Work to open a park named for Lori Doppelheuer is underway at the Simon Kenton Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2734.

On Oct. 20, 2015, Doppelheuer’s row house on West Second Street caught fire. She died attempting to save her three children, who died in the fire with her.

Doppelheuer was a Sgt. E-5 in the United States Marine Corps. She served from 1999 to 2003 and was the first vice commander of the VFW Post 2734 at the time of her death.

VFW Post 2734 Commander Eddie Brierly said the park is about honoring Doppelheuer.

“We wanted to come up with a way to honor her memory. She was an Iraqi War veteran and our first vice commander,” he said. “She would have been our first woman commander in this district.”

The park will be two acres and there is already a shelter in place, but there are plans to add picnic tables, a place to barbeque, a place for kids to play and restrooms.

“We’re working on getting handicap play equipment, too,” Brierly said. “We’ll have bathrooms for the public to use.”

According to Brierly, the park will be free to use and anyone who would want to use it would only have to call the VFW to reserve it.

The VFW is in the stage of raising money for the park. Sponsorship letters have been sent out to area businesses with different levels. There is a $1,000 level where the company/individual will have a brass plaque at the entrance of the park, a $500 level where the company/individual will have a name on the banner at the dedication ceremony and a $250 level, where the company/individual will have a name on the dedication ceremony program. Anything under $250 will be recognized on the VFW page.

The total cost of the park is estimated at $75,000.

There will also be a spaghetti dinner and auction on Saturday, Feb. 29. Dinner will be served at 4 p.m. and the auction will begin at 5:30 p.m. The menu includes spaghetti, garlic bread, salad and a dessert. The cost is $7 and there will be a split the pot, raffles and t-shirts available for purchase.

Lori’s Park t-shirts are $20 each and can also be purchased on the Lori’s Park Facebook page, which can be found by visiting https://www.facebook.com/LADLorisPark/.

Brierly said he hopes to have the park open by 2021.

A sign in the VFW Post 2734 shows where donations are being accepted for Lori’s Park. A t-shirt hanging on the sign is also available for purchase.
https://maysville-online.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/web1_loripark.jpgA sign in the VFW Post 2734 shows where donations are being accepted for Lori’s Park. A t-shirt hanging on the sign is also available for purchase. Christy Howell-Hoots, The Ledger Independent

Christy Howell-Hoots

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