The Emery County Miner’s Memorial dedication will take place on Saturday, June 11 immediately following the Emery County Fair parade. The monument is located at the Museum of the San Rafael at 70 North 100 East in Castle Dale.
Lori Ann Larsen, Committee Member spoke about the event, “This is phase two of the memorial project that was put together by the committee back in November of 2013, so we’ve been working for about two and half years to complete both of these monuments.” This is the second monument of a five phase project that has been planned by the committee. Other small monuments will be constructed along with ceremonies at Pleasant Valley Days in Scofield, Community Days in East Carbon and the final monument to go up at the Arts Festival in Helper.
“We will be welcomed by Senator David Hinkins, and his family has a very strong background in coal mining there in Emery County, so we are glad to have him with us. The speakers will be Cecil Roberts, he is the UMWA President, Brett Harvey, who is a former CEO of Consol and David Lauriski, who is former Assistant Secretary of Labor,” said Larsen. The ceremony will also have color guard, performers, blessing of the monument and a white dove release.
The event will show the long hours of planning and determination by the committee to make this memorial a reality. “This monument will have 124 names that is opposed to 1,352 that were on the Carbon County monument, there weren’t nearly as many deaths in Emery County. We will have each name read, every miner who has died and their name on the monument, their names will be read by their family and friends,” stated Larsen. Any family members or friends that have not been notified to participate are asked to please attend and meet on the north side of the monument prior to the ceremony.
Larsen finished by saying, “I would just like to thank the community members and also the cities that have provided money for us, the response and the sheer support that we have received not just from the citizens but the communities and also the business members, we appreciate everyone who has donated in any way to helping making this a realty.”