Latrobe freshman's Eagle Scout's veterans memorial inspired by grandfather

Nov. 26--When Greater Latrobe freshman Alejandro "Alec" Barlock noticed that his grandfather Eugene Jones, 89, a World War II veteran who fought in the Battle of the Bulge, had trouble making his way from Barnes Place senior living community in Derry Township to Veterans Day ceremonies in the area, he decided to bring the ceremony to him.

Barlock, 14, recently completed his Eagle Scout project, installing a veterans memorial on the Barnes Place property and conducting a special Veterans Day ceremony to dedicate the memorial.

"My grandpap kind of gave me inspiration because he really can't get out and do things that much," Barlock said. "I thought, 'Why not do something for him and the other people at Barnes Place who can't get out and do anything for Veterans Day?' "

The teenager led volunteers in excavating the memorial site and pouring a concrete footer, placing and leveling pavers to form a pathway to the memorial and landscaping around the area.

On Veterans Day, Barlock and other members of Boy Scout Troop 327, which meets in Sacred Heart Church in Youngstown, helped conduct a special ceremony at the memorial.

"A lot of people liked it and thanked me for it," he said of the ceremony. "They said it was really good. We put medallions of the engagements and flags around the memorial."

Barlock said he spent about nine months planning his project and roughly 20 hours at Barnes Place working on the memorial. About 14 volunteers -- other Scouts from his troop and family members -- joined Barlock and a local stonemason who wished to remain anonymous to construct the memorial.

"It's been an amazing process," Barnes Place director Mark Waugaman said. "We've been able to watch him not only from the very beginning of the planning and asking permission and getting approval to put it on the grounds, but as he put it together with the stonemason and getting in touch with the American Legion. He just really put it all together on his own to do something not to the benefit of himself but to the benefit of veterans at Barnes Place and also their families.

"It's not just for the residents; it's for everybody," he added.

American Legion Post 982 supplied the service medallions and flags for the Veterans Day memorial dedication ceremony at Barnes Place, according to James Foster, former Troop 327 scoutmaster and American Legion representative.

"I'm not sure exactly how many are there, but there are quite a few veterans at Barnes Place," Foster said. "That's basically why Alec wanted to do this project, so these guys and girls could participate in a Veterans Day or Memorial Day ceremony right there where they live, because a lot of them aren't capable of getting out to other events. The main thing was to honor them and give them a place where they can participate in the ceremony.

"We'll be there every Memorial Day and every Veterans Day to honor them," he added.

Waugaman plans to hold ceremonies at the new memorial regularly to honor the veterans living at Barnes Place.

"Alec got the ball rolling, and now it's up to everybody to keep that ball rolling and keep the interest piqued," Waugaman said. "The main thing is to maintain the respect factor and not to keep it quiet, not to say, 'Well, there's the memorial; that's good enough.' It needs to be the centerpiece of the entire process."

Greg Reinbold is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 724-459-6100, ext. 2913, or greinbold@tribweb.com.

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