It started as separate projects to educate the public and memorialize veterans. It ended with a single ceremony featuring two pieces of artwork that promise to provide value to the Kirklin, Ind., community for years to come.

An event held at The American Legion Post 310 in Kirklin displayed a mural and bench that members of the local American Legion Auxiliary unit raised funds to support. The artwork the dedication ceremony featured is a testament to the importance of veterans and their service, as well as the collaborative spirit of those who made the display possible.

“We wanted everybody involved,” said Linda Ward, ALA Unit 310 president, who spoke at the ceremony. “Some groups may have only two or three people who are the worker bees. But if you get everybody involved, they’ll come back for the next project.”

Members of the local Legion Family — including the Legion, Auxiliary, and Sons of The American Legion — began by brainstorming about ways to grab the attention of those passing by Post 310 and to help them understand what goes on inside. They decided on a mural for the side of the building, and they knew just the people to do it.

Artist Leah Kallner, a member of Unit 310, and her husband, Scott Kallner, a member of Post 310, had created artwork elsewhere in the community. For The American Legion project, their work would be a mural 93 feet long, completed over two years, and in two parts. 

The final product features elements that members of the Legion Family suggested, such as veterans, the American flag, dog tags, and the post and unit number, 310.

“Everybody was excited once it began to come together,” Ward said.

Meanwhile, a second project began to take shape. Some members of the local Legion Family had passed away during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the post and unit couldn’t gather to celebrate those members’ lives. The Auxiliary unit decided a bench outside the post would be a good way to commemorate the members lost during that time and to pay tribute to servicemembers unaccounted for.

Then Unit 310 member Kyleen Lockard happened upon a woodworker displaying his wares at an area farmers market. When she asked if he’d be interested in creating a memorial bench for the Kirklin Legion Family, the artist — Charlie Brown, a veteran of the Marines — jumped at the opportunity. 

By 2024, The American Legion post had a newly completed mural and bench on display, as well as a new flagpole, funded with the help of anonymous donations. The ceremony, conducted on National POW/MIA Recognition Day, celebrated the memory of members who had passed away and the completion of artwork that will serve as a symbol of what The American Legion and American Legion Auxiliary represent. And it all was the result of teamwork, Ward said.

“We’re a small post and unit,” she said. “We enjoy reminding others that we’re small, but we’re mighty. And we never forget — Service Not Self.”