Grafton's National Memorial of Military Ascent Unveils First Bronze Statue
GRAFTON - The National Memorial of Military Ascent is one step closer to completion. On Monday, May 12, 2025, elected officials, community members and veterans gathered at the Grafton Visitor Center for the unveiling of the memorial’s first bronze statue. The memorial is modeled after Point du Hoc in Normandy, where Allied forces landed during D-Day. The completed memorial will feature 12 statues climbing the bluffs at the site of the National Memorial of Military Ascent (NMMA). “‘Ascent’ can have two meanings,” said David Schock, documentarian, who emceed the ceremony. “The first is spelled ‘ascent,’ and it means to rise or climb, exactly what the Second Army Rangers did. The second ‘assent’ means to give approval or agreement, to concur. Point du Hoc brought together both these meanings. Those soldiers climbed, but before they did that, they gave their assent by offering their lives in the service to this country.”