Our Parks are Places That Honor Veterans, Heroes and Loved Ones

Visitors to Greenbriar-Saybrook Park can walk the path to the wooded area and find a memorial dedicated to Major Michael E. Weston, 37, a DEA special agent who died in a helicopter crash on assignment in western Afghanistan in 2009. A graduate of State College Area High School, he is survived by family members in State College.

This beautiful setting for Major Weston’s memorial features a stone as well as two benches engraved with these quotes:

“In valor there is hope.” ~Tacitus

“The nation which forgets its defenders will itself be forgotten.” ~ Calvin Coolidge

Centre Region Parks and Recreation (CRPR) offers the opportunity to honor a veteran, hero or any loved one at a local park through three programs:

My Veteran/Hero Trees

"The My Veteran/My Hero Tribute Tree Program is currently focused at regional parks, including Oak Hall Regional Park and Whitehall Road Regional Park," says CRPR Director Pam Salokangas. "This special initiative allows loved ones to honor and remember eligible Veterans/Heroes who have actively served in the US Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Merchant Marines, and Army Air Corps, and also helps to beautify local parkland."

Gift Benches

CRPR has added 82 park benches since 1997; 57 memorial benches are in Ferguson Township alone. Potential donors are encouraged to call the CRPR Office at (814) 231-3071 to discuss available sites for park benches.

Remembrance Trees

CRPR has planted six remembrance trees in the Tudek Arboretum to date this year and planted six trees at Tudek Park in 2018. 

For residents with questions about CRPR programs as well as pavilion rentals, Ferguson Township has added a Parks and Path section to our Frequently Asked Questions web page.