Memorial planners struggle to find funding after setbacks

CONYERS - Planners for a war-veterans memorial in rural Rockdale County are struggling to make it a reality. <br> <br> Numerous setbacks have whittled away at fundraising possibilities for the Georgia Veterans Memorial Park organizing committee since 1995, when plans surfaced for a Walk of Heroes in Black Shoals Park to honor the millions of Georgians who have served in the military. <br> <br> The plans also call for outdoor plazas devoted to five wars of the 20th century: World War I, World War II, Vietnam, Korea and the Persian Gulf War. <br> <br> ``Of course I&#39;m worried,&#39;&#39; said Bud Sosebee, a former Rockdale County commissioner and a World War II veteran who&#39;s spearheading the effort to build the Georgia Veterans Memorial Park. ``Many things could stop funding for something like this.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> For one thing, charitable contributions have dried up a weak economy. <br> <br> A key congressional backer and one of Georgia&#39;s most well-known veterans - Sen. Max Cleland - lost his re-election bid in November. Cleland, a Vietnam war veteran and triple amputee, had championed the Rockdale memorial and had helped secure $900,000 in congressional funding for it. <br> <br> Organizers said the project will cost about $12 million. They&#39;ll look to the new Congress to contribute an additional $5 million. <br> <br> Saxby Chambliss, the Republican who defeated Cleland, promised in a statement to ``strongly advocate&#39;&#39; funding for veterans projects throughout Georgia. <br> <br> Problems within the committee itself have hampered the project. Planning bogged down for a few years after Sosebee, 78, fell ill. <br> <br> Then in January, former Rockdale Commission Chairman Randy Poynter, an early supporter of the project, died of a heart ailment. <br> <br> ``The real setback was not having Randy&#39;s expertise in raising money for the park,&#39;&#39; commission chairman Norman Wheeler said. <br> <br> Organizers hope to raise the rest of the money by selling 160,000 pavers gray bricks that will line a path through the park. Each brick, costing between $100 and $200, will have the name of a veteran engraved on its face. <br> <br> If sales go well, organizers said construction on the first phase of the park will begin next year. <br> <br> ``We really think it&#39;s going to be a nice place for folks to come and visit and pay respects to Georgians who&#39;ve fought for their country,&#39;&#39; Sosebee said.