Veterans and Athletes United Fallen Heroes Memorial on display in Zelienople

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — A traveling memorial made to remember those who fought for our country is on display in Butler County.

The traveling tribute will be in Zelienople for four days, offering the community a chance to honor U.S. military members who lost their lives.

Standing six feet tall and 28 feet long, a flag memorial made up on 7,000 dog tags sits in Four Corners Park — to honor and remember those who lost their lives in war since September 11. 

“These folks and all who have fallen have done one thing, given us the ability to celebrate this day, said Corkey Romeo, Emcee for the Zelienople Memorial for the Fallen. “In this celebration, we need to remember our history and how we got here and the cost.”

The memorial has traveled to more than 50 locations nationwide since 2018 and supports Gold Star families who are grieving loved ones who died in the line of duty.

“We all have to remember we have to earn that sacrifice every single day,” Romeo said. “It doesn’t come by itself.”

Heading into the holiday, Romeo is stressing the importance of why we honor the fallen and why we must always remember.

“If we don’t pass it on to the next generation, it will be lost,” Romeo said. “We’re one generation away from losing everything. Losing all our freedoms. They need to understand, the kids, us, we all need to remember and understand where we came from. If we remember our roots, we can know where we’re going.”

The Zelienople Historical Society will host the memorial through July 5.

They will also host their 4th of July parade on Tuesday with nearly 10,000 people expected to be in attendance.