CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The historic Lone Sailor Statue honoring U.S. Navy service members will be unveiled Friday at the Great Lakes Science Center in downtown Cleveland.
Cleveland will be the 18th location to display the statue, which honors Navy veterans and those who are currently serving. The Cleveland statue will also be a tribute to the Northeast Ohio residents who’ve served in the Navy, U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Coast Guard, said Mike Dovilla, the president and executive director of the USS Cleveland Legacy Foundation.
“I think it will be a rallying point for Clevelanders from all over this region who’ve either served themselves or have had family who’s served, who’ve lost a loved one or a friend who’s had the honor and the opportunity to serve in uniform for the country,” said Dovilla, a Navy veteran who served in the Iraq War from 2007-08 and remains a reservist.
The statue’s unveiling is intended to be the launchpad for a campaign to establish a museum and memorial for the latest ship to be named the USS Cleveland, which is currently under construction. Upon its retirement -- which could be more than two decades from now -- the ship would serve as a museum and memorial for all four ships that have been named Cleveland.
Cleveland’s Lone Sailor Statue will be installed on the second floor of the Great Lakes Science Center, but Dovilla said it’s intended to be a temporary home. The goal is to have it moved in roughly one year to a permanent home at Voinovich Park.
The first Lone Sailor Statue was installed in 1987 at the U.S. Navy Memorial in Washington, D.C. Others are on display at Normandy, Pearl Harbor and in Guam.
The unnamed sailor depicted in the statue is believed to be approximately 25 years old and a senior second class petty officer, according to the U.S. Navy Memorial.
Many of the statues are placed in locations where they look out over water, Dovilla said. The sailor may be thinking of an upcoming post or the sailors they’ve served with and lost, he said.
“It’s really sort of a place for contemplation, a place for reflection, and that’s how I think a lot of folks have treated these in different locations around the country,” Dovilla said. “And this one will be the same I think for Clevelanders.”
With the statue a way to honor Cleveland’s longstanding relationship to the Navy, plans for the museum and memorial are already in the works, Dovilla said.
The first two ships named USS Cleveland are from the World War I and World War II eras. The third was commissioned during the Vietnam War and served through Operation Enduring Freedom, the name for most of the war in Afghanistan. It was decommissioned in 2011, Dovilla said.
The latest ship that will be named USS Cleveland is currently being built in Marinette, Wisconsin, and it’s scheduled to be commissioned in Cleveland sometime in 2023.
The ship’s active service is poised to last 20 to 25 years, and it will be based in Naval Station Mayport in Florida.
The campaign around the latest USS Cleveland, from the ship’s commission to its retirement as a museum, will be a $5 million endeavor. KeyBank has contributed $200,000, and about 53% of the campaign total has been raised so far, Dovilla said.
Tim Burke, KeyBank’s Northeast Ohio market president, said he hopes KeyBank’s contribution will move other businesses and members of the community to provide funding.
“We’re really excited about the project, the opportunity for Cleveland, and certainly the opportunity to shed light on what a tremendous celebration this is going to be,” Burke said.
Board members of the USS Cleveland Legacy Foundation and other volunteers hope to host an annual Thanksgiving dinner in Florida for the crew and families while the newest Cleveland ship is in port, Dovilla said. The foundation also intends to send care packages overseas to future crew members.
With the campaign spanning multiple decades, Dovilla said the statue acts as a “down payment” to support the long-term investment of the ship.
“We hope that it will be not just a catalyst for the military, but an opportunity for those who’ve served in the military, served in the Navy and served on this ship from all over the U.S. to take a fresh look at Cleveland, Ohio, as a place to come work and live and raise a family after they complete their naval service,” he said.
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