Women Veterans Meditation Garden Dedicated on Veterans' Day

By Kelly Watts, executive director, N.J. Vietnam Veterans' Memorial Foundation

On Veterans Day, the Women’s Meditation Garden was dedicated adjacent to the Vietnam Era Educational Center. The garden will be a lasting tribute to the thousands of women, both military and civilian, who served in Vietnam. It will also provide a quiet place for friends and family to reflect on the loss of a loved one, perhaps one of the 1,556 New Jerseyans whose names are engraved on the 366 black granite panels of the Memorial.

The garden includes a fountain, a covered pergola with benches and a variety of plants chosen to provide color and texture year-round. The garden was designed by the Monmouth County Master Gardeners Association. It was built and planted by the New Jersey Highway Authority, with funds provided by the New Jersey State Legislature with the assistance of Assemblyman Jack Collins.