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Our Story

Dan FosterSeveral years ago, Dan Foster decided that we should do something in Alpine to honor our veterans. The initial vision he began to discuss with his many friends was a plaque on a rock. As the vision was discussed, it grew. A plaque on a rock wasn't enough. He wanted to do more.

He began to have conversations with a core group of people who later became the Veterans Advisory Committee. He began to talk to the organizations that would become important partners in the project - the Kiwanis Club of Alpine, the Alpine Community Center, the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians, the Alpine Bert Fuller VFW Post 9578, and the County of San Diego. He started a circuit of "dog and pony shows" to share the idea.

The project when originally conceived included tiles on a Wall of Honor for local residents and bricks on a Walk of Honor for those who lived outside that area. In speaking with people about this concept, we quickly discovered that as many as a third of our local residents wanted to put family groups on the wall. Some of the family members lived locally and some lived elsewhere which meant they would not be able to be together. This became a challenge to overcome.

The end result was to eliminate residential requirements and have only a Wall of Honor with tiles for all military veterans and those currently serving. When ordered together as a family unit, the tiles could be placed together on the Wall.

Today, construction is complete on a large beautiful wall at the Alpine Community Center which pays tribute to those men and women who served honorably in the Armed Forces of the United States of America and to those currently serving. A dedication ceremony was held Memorial Day of 2011. The Wall of Honor has been so popular that in 2016 we completed the construction of two new sections on the Wall.

Veterans Advisory Committee

The Committee would like to recognize the contributions of members who are no longer with us: Joe Drew, Bob Jackson, Dave Kebert and Fred Higginbotham.

The Committee also thanks former Committee Members Bill Burton, Larry Curtis, Herb Cawthorne, Rod Galloway, Debbie Jackson, Pat Stalker and Fernando Gonzalez for their service to the group.