Lake County World Wars I & II Veterans and Holocaust Memorial

World Wars I & II stand as the most significant conflicts in history. World War I, from 1914 to 1918, claimed between 15 to 22 million lives for both military and civilian. World War II, between 1939 and 1945, claimed between 70 to 85 million lives, making it history’s deadliest conflict.

In Indiana, about 150,000 served in WWI and another 400,000 Hoosiers served in WWII. Of those who served, around 3,000 died in WWI with another 13,370 perishing in WWII. In Lake County alone, nearly 1,000 soldiers died in both conflicts.

This tremendous loss of life from Lake County experienced during these conflicts have resonated to our modern age. Up until now, these men and women who sacrificed for our country have been largely lost to history, save for a few local memorials that highlight their heroism.

The mission of the Veterans Memorial Parkway is to bring lasting honor to those who have served and sacrificed for our great country, in times of both war and peace. With this goal in mind, the Friends of the Veterans Memorial Parkway (FVMP) first secured land for a memorial to both WWI and WWII in 2000 with the help of then Crown Point Mayor James D. Metros.

Since then, the FVMP has worked to secure funding to develop and construct the memorial. In 2019, the FVMP was approached by globally renowned design firm Berenbaum Jacobs Associates to design the site. With their participation, the Holocaust was added as a focus, which combined with both conflicts amounted to a “30-years War” between the two.

In 2022, with the help of former Mayor David Uran, the site for the memorial was moved to the current location at Sauerman Woods Park.  The memorial will include two towers with the names of those who died from each war plus local victims of the Holocaust, and an orientation area for groups, amphitheater, and a walkway with fifteen “chapters” describing America’s role during this 30 year period. The FVMP thanks Mayor Pete Land and Parks Director Jennie Burgess for their continuing cooperation on this landmark endeavor.

In November of 2025, the site was officially dedicated to the memorial. Images of the event, plus those of the proposed memorial are below. We ask for you to consider a donation towards this project by pressing the donate button. If you have any additionals questions, please contact us at vetparkway95@gmail.com.