BellSouth Telephone Pioneers Create Living Memorial At Battleship Memorial Park

Feb 7th, 2004

BellSouth Telephone Pioneers Create Living Memorial At Battleship Memorial Park

February 6-7, 2004 saw the beginning of an incredible new memorial at USS ALABAMA Battleship Memorial Park. The Alabama Chapter of the BellSouth Pioneers planted 67 live oak trees in BellSouth Pioneers Living Memorial Park at the USS ALABAMA Battleship Memorial Park. The oak trees, representing the 67 counties in Alabama, were planted in memory of those who have died in military service, and in honor of all veterans and those currently in military service.

According to Ricky Rivers, president of the Alabama Chapter of the BellSouth Pioneers, “We wanted to do something statewide to express our appreciation for the Alabamians who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. We planted 67 live oaks, one for each county in Alabama, in the shape of Alabama.” Later, sidewalks tracing the paths of Alabama’s major rivers will provide handicapped access to and through the park.

“USS ALABAMA Battleship Memorial Park is proud to have the BellSouth Telephone Pioneers partner with us in honoring Alabama’s heroes, all those veterans who have so unselfishly given of themselves for our great country,” Bill Tunnell, Executive Director of the Park, said. “This organization has a wonderful history of service to our State, and this is just another example of selfless dedication on their part to make our state a better place.”

In May 2003, BellSouth employees held a “Tribute to Troops” Day, honoring BellSouth employees who are currently serving in the war in Iraq. “Employees wore yellow ribbons to honor their colleagues and their families. This park will help us honor those serving now and those who did not make it home,” Rivers said.

“BellSouth is proud to honor Alabama’s veterans,” said Gigi Armbrecht, BellSouth’s Regional Manager for southwest Alabama. “BellSouth has a reputation of supporting our troops and the BellSouth employees who serve in the military. We are glad to have this opportunity to express our thanks to the families of those who died in service to our country. BellSouth and the BellSouth Pioneers have not, and will not, forget.”

Several dozen Bell South Pioneers planted live oak trees 12 to 15 feet tall. The plantings form the shape of the State of Alabama, and should be immediately recognizable from the air. The Pioneers plan to add amenities to the park each year.

Groundbreaking for the historic project was held on Veterans Day, November 11, 2003. "Dedication of the Living Mmeorial will be on Veterans Day 2004, officials for the Pioneers," Mary Boehm, President of the BellSouth Foundation, commented. "What better time for BellSouth to honor those who have given their lives for this country than Veterans Day."

Other companies and organizations donating time and services to make this project a reality include, Dodd’s Nursery and Landscaping, Polysurveying, Lamar Advertising, Mobile Paint Manufacturing, and the Mobile Naval Sea Cadets.

The BellSouth Pioneers represent more than 100,000 active and retired employees from each of the nine states of the BellSouth organization. The Alabama Chapter has 11,926 members. 4,657 are active employees of the corporation, and 7,269 are retired life members.

In 2002, BellSouth Pioneers across the region gave an incredible 3,682,047 hours of volunteer time - which has a value determined by the Points of Light Foundation of $60,901,057. For more information about the Alabama Chapter of BellSouth Pioneers, please visit www.bellsouthalpioneers.org.

BellSouth Pioneers is a member organization of the Telecom Pioneers, the largest industry-related volunteer organization in the world. Other member companies include At&T, Alivant, Broadwing, Frontier, MTS, Qwest, SaskTel, SBC, Telecordia Technologies, and Verizon.

Battleship Memorial Park is operated by the USS ALABAMA Battleship Commission, comprised of 18 Alabama citizens appointed by the Governor from all over the state. The Park prides itself that it has been self-supporting for daily operations for more than 40 years, and has hosted more than 12,000,000 visitors.

The Commission has just completed a $10 million restoration project to repair the deteriorating hull of Battleship ALABAMA (BB-60) and moving Submarine USS DRUM (SS-228) to a permanent land-based location. Both vessels are National Historic Landmarks.

For more info, visit http://www.ussalabama.com