Commemorative Plaque Wall

Honoring the Ships, Squadrons, Men and Women of the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Merchant Marine and Their Families

The Commemorative Plaque Wall offers individuals and groups the opportunity to create a permanent memorial by sponsoring a plaque dedicated to an individual, group, ship, squadron, command, battle or event within the U.S. Sea Services, while supporting the mission of the Navy Memorial. The plaques are publicly displayed within the Naval Heritage Center and on the Internet, where they are viewed by thousands of veterans, families, friends, tourists and school groups who visit Washington or browse our website.

Family and friends gather at the Memorial in May 2010 for the dedication of Marty DeGrand's commemorative plaque, including sculptor Stanley Bleifeld and two former Navy Memorial Presidents: Rear Admirals Bill Thompson and Pierce Johnson.

View Marty DeGrand's Navy Log Service Profile

Korean War veteran Marty DeGrand of West Haven, Connecticut, reached out to the Foundation to secure a seven-foot Lone Sailor statue for his community's newly organized Veteran's Park. His successful sponsorship of the statue and enthusiasm for the Navy Memorial ultimately led to an invitation to join the organization's Board of Directors. For the rest of his life, Marty continued his advocacy for the Memorial, encouraging other shipmates and fellow veterans to support the Memorial. Over the course of his life, he donated five Charitable Gift Annuities. When he died in July 2009, his family and friends at the Memorial wanted to honor himand dedication to the Memorial, so they sponsored a commemorative plaque in Marty's memory.

Click on "View the Plaques" or scroll down to learn more on how you can sponsor and design your own plaque.

View the Plaques

Sponsor a New Plaque

Order a Plaque Replica - pdf

Each plaque is an archival Brushed Aluminum plate measuring seven by three and three-quarter inches and is created by our Graphic Designer in co-operation with the plaque's sponsor. Plaques can include pictures, text, group insignias, logos, and other graphical elements.

Each sponsor upon completion of their Commemorative Plaque Project is entitled to a Dedication Ceremony in our theater. During the ceremony, a member of the Memorial's leadership team will extend welcoming remarks to the sponsors of the plaque and invite their members or families to share reflections of their time aboard their ship, in their squadron or memories of their loved one being honored. Often, Plaque Dedications are done in conjunction with a scheduled reunion in the greater Washington D.C. area. These events are always very meaningful to the participants.

One particular highlight from our 2010 Plaque Dedications was the joint and final reunion for the USS Card CVE-11 Association and the USS Long Island CVE-1 Association. What a fitting, lasting tribute these plaques provided to the shipmates of these two associations that would no longer gather each year. Another highlight was the personal plaque dedicated to James “Jim” Booze who served as a Navy Memorial Volunteer greeting and speaking to numerous youth groups as well as taking a leadership role at the District of Columbia Commission on Aging. This Plaque Dedication was attended by numerous community leaders that were so pleased to learn of Jim’s service at the Navy Memorial as well as the overall mission of the Navy Memorial. I invite you to scroll down the list of commemorative plaques and consider sponsoring or sharing the potential for sponsoring a plaque within your shipmates family or friends.

Once the process is complete, exact replicas of the plaque, mounted on a handsome wood backing suitable for display or hanging, are available as retail items. Plaque sponsors are also given the image of plaque on a CD that can then be used commercially to recreate that image on coffee cups, fabric patches, baseball caps, or other suitable items.

A Commemorative Plaque is a wonderful way to honor the men and women of the United States Sea Services - past, present and future.
For more information, please contact:

Paul T. Haley
Director of Planned Giving
U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation
701 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Suite #123
Washington, DC 20004-2608
1-800-821-8892, Ext. 760
Fax: 202-737-2308
E-mail: PaulHaley@navymemorial.org