MONTEVALLO –  Congressman Spencer Bachus (AL-6) delivered the following remarks today at groundbreaking ceremonies for the Alabama National Cemetery. 

Years from now, Linda and I hope to bring our grandchildren to this site.  They will doubtless ask: “Grandy, who is buried here?” As a young man I would have responded "Soldiers” and “Veterans” and talked of their Service.  It might have ended there. Now I will start by telling them that those are the graves of Fathers and Mothers, Sons and Daughters, Husbands and Wives, Brothers and Sisters, Grandparents, maybe a favorite Uncle or Cousin, a high school buddy or a College Roommate, a best friend or a favorite childhood playmate. I will talk about their sacrifice, bravery and patriotism. I will tell them it is about respect and honor. But most of all I will tell them it’s about Love, our love for them and more importantly, their love for us. How much we loved them and how much they loved us. A love that is deep and abiding. A bond that is sacred and eternal.  This cemetery is a living testimony to that Love.  I know they will not fully understand. But one day, when they are much older, they will.

BACKGROUND

            Today’s groundbreaking clears the way for construction of the first 45-acre phase of the new veterans cemetery which, when fully completed, will stretch over 479 acres in the Shoal Creek Valley.  Construction will be performed in stages, with work on the first 10 acres scheduled to begin later this year. 

            Congressman Bachus worked to secure a federal investment of more than $26 million in the veterans cemetery, including $18.5 million for construction contained in the 2008 federal budget.   The need for the cemetery was established by a report to Congress that found that more than 200,000 veterans in the Birmingham area do not have convenient access to burial in a national cemetery.  The cemetery will be located adjacent to The American Village in Montevallo.