Dana Point is expected to add a Marines memorial in Heritage Park to honor those who served and recognize the city’s connection to the 5th Marine Regiment at Camp Pendleton.

Proposed by the Dana Point 5th Marine Regiment Support Group, the project will center around a bronze statue of a Marine being welcomed home by family members. Surrounding elements are slated to include a granite wall, two concrete benches and inscribed pavers.

The city council unanimously approved the monument construction at their meeting on April 15, pending funds from the support group. 

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“I have dreamed of a permanent tribute in Dana Point,” Terry Rifkin, Dana Point resident and president of the Marine support group, said at the meeting.

Rifkin, who has been the program’s president for 18 years, hopes the memorial will resonate with those in all military branches and their loved ones.

“It embodies the strength, resilience and sacrifice not just of our military, but of those who love and support them,” she said. “The homefront heroes.”

The memorial is projected to cost approximately $220,000 and will be funded by the city and the support group.

Dana Point is expected to contribute $110,000. 

However, Dana Point Public Works Director Matt Sinacori said the city’s contribution will not be allocated until the project moves into the construction phase, which will only be possible if the Marine support group meets its fundraising goal.

Rafkin said she is confident the group will meet its $130,000 to $150,000 fundraising goal.

The statue, set to be called “Returning Home,” will be created by Sutton Betti, a sculptor whose bronze statues often honor U.S. military members.

“As a former Marine, it was super important to me that we did this right,” Councilmember Michael Villar said at the April meeting.

Along with Villar, Councilmembers Jamie Frederico and John Gabard are also retired Marines.

“I have gone through too many homecomings in my life — both good ones and bad ones — so it’s fitting that we are finally celebrating (soldiers) to come home,” Gabard said.

While the monument itself hasn’t faced pushback, the city received a few emails to the council concerning its location. 

“If we need another monument, why not put it at the base of the park?” wrote Rose McNutt in an email to city staff.

“I want to make sure you know I am not against the monument for our Marines, I am against its location,” McNutt wrote in another email.

Heritage Park is a common photograph site for weddings, proms or birthdays, and some residents are worried about how the monument will disrupt the setting.

“Whenever we do one of these things, I am sensitive to the fact that perhaps it’s good for the broader city and broader community, but there could be some issues for specific residents,” Councilmember Mike Frost said at the meeting.

Over the past several years, Orange County has seen an influx of ways to honor veterans and educate the public, like opening Heroes Hall in 2017 at the OC Fair & Events Center in Costa Mesa.

Additionally, last July, the Anaheim City Council signed off on plans for the county’s first veterans cemetery.

Located in Gypsum Canyon, 157 acres of the 283-acre property will be reserved for veterans and managed by the California Department of Veterans Affairs, while the remaining portion will be a public cemetery.

[Read: Orange County’s Push for its First Veterans Cemetery Gains Momentum]

As an official veterans cemetery, burials will be accompanied by a 21-gun salute, Vietnam War Veterans will receive a motorcycle escort with a three-volley salute and specialty events are expected on Veterans Day.

[Read: This Memorial Day, Orange County Veterans Ponder a Cemetery Of Their Own]

Although outside the support group’s jurisdiction, Rifkin fully supports the veteran cemetery installation.

“(The veteran’s cemetery) is a great idea – long overdue – where people can honor and pay tribute to those veterans who gave (their) all,” she said in a April 25 phone interview.

Dana Point’s memorial is expected to be completed within the next 12 to 18 months.

“We will invite our patriotic community locally and across the country to be a part of this legacy,” Rifkin said at the meeting. “Together we will never forget.”