Meekins Memorial Bench

It's in! The Meekins bench in the Anchorage Park Strip has been installed. (There will be additional rockwork around it.) It's located on the south side of the park along a walkway at G Street. Here's a photo of the bench that Genie took, featuring a couple of Maddie's friends.

I don't know about you, but whenever I see a bench and read the inscription, it usually leaves me wondering who were these people and why would a bench at this location have been significant to them?

For those of you who may not know, the park strip is near to Gramma's house, so, as we were growing up, we spent a lot of time there - playing tennis, softball, having BBQs, hanging out, skating in the winter. Also, that's where Russ' little league baseball team played (sponsored by Hustlin' Russ Auto Sales) and where Grandpa launched Anchorage's little league football. (Ask us sometime about the field striping fiasco that involved pancake mix.) Of course, the big bonfire to celebrate statehood was at the park strip and so many other communtiy events were held.

So, for our bench's inscription, I tried to describe Gramma and Grandpa and convey the importance of the park strip both to our family, personally, and to their contributions to the community. It will say:

Russ and Adele Meekins

Anchorage Pioneers Who Often Used the
Public Greenspace of the Park Strip
To Build and Celebrate Community

In Loving Memory,
Meekins Family

Hope you like it ~Kathy