Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail: dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org
Surnames: Bertz, Ayers, Geiger, Morrow, Seehafer
----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI) 10/19/2016
Bertz Honored During Dedication Ceremony (Legacy Stone – 2016)
(Photo of Bertz Four generations)
Four generations gather for a picture during the Legacy Stone dedication ceremony for Joan (Ayers) Bertz Sept. 10 at The Highground. Shown (l-r), granddaughter Teah (Geiger) Morrow (holding great-grandson Wes Morrow), son Daniel Bertz, son Ben Bertz, husband Bob Bertz (sitting), grandson Dylan Geiger (holding stone), Joan (Ayers) Bertz, grandson Nick Seehafer, daughter Sarah Geiger (holding great-granddaughter Lennox Morrow) and daughter, Kathy Seehafer. (Contributed photo)
An emotional Legacy Stone dedication ceremony took place Sept. 10 at The Highground Veterans Memorial Park near Neillsville.
Family and friends came to honor Joan (Ayers) Bertz of Loyal. Four generations were at The Highground to help her celebrate.
Joan is the daughter of a veteran. She has three brothers, one sister, her husband and their son, who are all veterans.
Sponsors of Joan’s stone were her sister Charlotte Ayers and her brothers, Wendell and Donald Ayers. Joan’s husband Bob Bertz and Wendell Ayers also have honor stones in the Korean Tribute. Joan always supported her military family.
The Highground in Neillsville is a 155-acre named veterans memorial park that pays tribute to the dead, and honors the survivors, their service, and their sacrifices. The Highground fulfills its mission of healing and education by bringing past lessons into hopes for the future.
The Highground continues to be a focus of healing for all who come, regardless of the name of the battle which left the scar s. The park includes tributes to veterans of WWI, WWII, Korea, and Vietnam, as well as a National Native American Vietnam memorial, the Wisconsin Persian Gulf Tribute, a Mediation Garden, a handicap accessible treehouse, an exact replica of the liberty Bell, Effigy Mound, a Learning Center (with a library) and four miles of hiking trails.
Located three miles west of Neillsville on USH 10, the park is lighted and open to visitors 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.
The Highground’s statement is, “More than for all veterans, more than for those who did not come back, The Highground is a place for all of us.”
Incorporated in 1984 as the Wisconsin Vietnam Veterans Memorial Project, Inc., this grass-roots effort continues only because of the dedication of countless individuals, families, organizations and businesses who have given of their time, talents and financial resources. Volunteers and contributors are the Hart of The Highground.
Legacy Stone Placement ceremonies are scheduled each month April through October. Contact The Highground at 715-743-4224 or email highgrnd@tds.net for more information. Visit the website at www.thehighground.org and “Like” them on Facebook.
