Tualatin celebrates Memorial Day with new plaza
Published 12:10 pm Monday, May 26, 2025
Danny O’Neal (left) and his wife, Joni sit on a bench with their patriotic shirts before the start of the ribbon cutting ceremony of the Veterans Plaza at the Lake of the Commons in Tualatin. (Jaime Valdez/Valley Times)
Mary-Bath Luhnow speaks during the ribbon cutting ceremony of the Veterans Plaza at the Lake of the Commons in Tualatin. Luhnow’s dad, Joe Lipscomb, designed a concept of the Veterans Plaza. (Jaime Valdez/Valley Times)
Teo West, 6, hugs his dad, Aaron, during the ribbon cutting ceremony of the Veterans Plaza at the Lake of the Commons in Tualatin. (Jaime Valdez/Valley Times)
Scouts Troop 530 raise the American and the Prisoner of War flags at the start of the ribbon cutting ceremony of the Veterans Plaza at the Lake of the Commons in Tualatin. (Jaime Valdez/Valley Times)
Tualatin Mayor Frank Bubenik and Mary-Bath Luhnow cut the ribbon May 26 to celebrate the completion of Veterans Plaza with dignitaries at the Lake of the Commons in Tualatin. (Jaime Valdez/Valley Times)
Citizens stand for the National Anthem May 26 before celebrating the completion of Veterans Plaza at the Lake of the Common in Tualatin (Jaime Valdez/Valley Times)
The Tualatin VFW and city of Tualatin are once again hosting an annual Memorial Day observance set for 10:45 a.m. Monday, May 26, on the west side of Tualatin Lake at the Commons, located at 8325 S.W. Nyberg St.
The morning will not only pay tribute to military veterans, but also includes a 9:30 a.m. ribbon cutting ceremony for the recently completed Veterans Plaza.
The plaza, located on the east side of the lake, features a reflecting pool, seating, a labyrinth, a synthetic turf area, a story circle and three unique pieces of art created by Kentucky-based sculptor Douwe Blumberg.
Among the guest speakers will be Tualatin Mayor Frank Bubenik, who is a U.S. Army veteran, and U.S. Rep. Andrea Salinas.
“In past years, we’ve had an honored vet speak. This year, we’re going in a slightly different direction. Instead, we’re going to have a Gold Star parent out there speaking,” said Jesse Thompson, chaplain for the Tualatin VFW.
The Gold Star designation is given to families who have lost a family member in combat.
Jeff and Kim Keller of Beaverton will speak about their late son, Andrew Keller, who was killed in action in the mountains of Southeast Afghanistan on Aug. 15, 2012.
The 22-year-old Southridge High School grad grew up in Beaverton and loved playing football, basketball and baseball.
The West Coast Ravens, a group of pilots who fly RV airplanes, will perform a missing man formation, and the Tualatin High School Crimsonnaires, a choral group, will sing two songs, one of which will be the national anthem.
Thompson, who served in the U.S. Army from 1992 to 2019, said he’s expecting a sizable crowd attending the event.
“In the past we’ve had about 250 show up,” he said.
In addition, the Portland Model Powerboat Association will run their boats on the lake, and a bugler will bring the event to a close by playing Taps.
The Memorial Day observance will be followed at 11: 30 a.m. by a free picnic put on by the VFW Auxiliary at Tualatin Community Park, 8515 S.W. Tualatin Road. Hotdogs, hamburgers and side dishes will be among the picnic food fare.
Thompson said the auxiliary gets donations to purchase the food, cooks it up and often serves as many as 200 people at the park.
“It’s quite a big turnout,” he said.
