Family would like to see memorial restored

On the evening of Jan. 5, a 9/11 memorial in Howell on Newtons Corner Road and Memorial Drive was vandalized by someone or some people by stealing solar lights and panels and throwing stuffed animals placed there and pushing around stones with the Howell victims' names on them to the side; these lights have shined on the memorial and the American flag since the fifth year anniversary.

The Milanowycz family has maintained and kept up with the memorial sign and land since the Easter after 9/11. The sign was placed there in memory of Dave Milanowycz's nephew, Gregory Milanowycz, who was lost on that sad day of 9/11.

The neighbors who took up a collection for the Milanowycz family from Jacob Drive presented the sign to the family on that Good Friday before Easter of 2002. The Milanowycz family has maintained the land and the sign since then.

The township at one point wanted to move the memorial out of the view of the neighborhood where it sits now, to the back of the woods off a new road that was recently constructed, but with the push for its presence of the memorial for all to see it remained where it stands today.

This memorial was always about "we will never forget" that day and the victims that were lost. It represents everyone, all the Howell victims lost on 9/11 as well as the EMS, fire and police, and servicemen, including Michael Curtin who was the first Howell resident and soldier lost in the war in Iraq.

This vandalism has made this family upset and mad. To come home from the store and to pass the memorial as everyone does every day and night and see it has no lights. Because there is no electricity on the corner, the solar lights and panels served the purpose of light to shine on the sign and the flag, and tonight there was no light at all.

It is very heartbreaking that a person or persons took the time to pull out all the lights (10 in all) and wiring and the solar panels, just for the sake of doing it. What the heck are they thinking? Dave Milanowycz put a lot of time, effort and money into reconstructing that memorial to have it up and presentable for the fifth year anniversary with no help from the township, since it had to be taken down for the construction of the road. It's a disgrace to see the memorial with the stones pushed aside, the stuffed animals thrown about and the landscaping stones all pushed around.

It's sacred land for remembrance to reflect to say a prayer to remember. Can you help us get the word out to get the lights back so they can shine on the sign and the American flag.

Donna L. Milanowycz

Howell