The Vallely family and the Soldiers Memorial Fund are proud to announce the completion and dedication ceremony for the Sliters Memorial Park in Bigfork, Montana.

The “Fallen Soldiers” and “Pioneer Woman” statues have been installed with the help of so many volunteers, it defies listing all their names, but we want everyone to know how grateful we all are, and we look forward to seeing you at the dedication.

The co-chairpersons of the project: Delaney Carlson and Jerry Murphy have done a marvelous job coordinating all the work, gathering materials and donations, and ensuring the statue did not suffer any damage in the installation. Jerry sent us the following message excerpts when the work was completed:

It went like a successful military operation.

Nobody was hurt! Fallen Heroes was not dropped and is still in perfect condition! The installation was perfectly accomplished!

Virtually all of us got a lump in our throats and a tear in our eyes from the beauty of your sculpture! It is in the perfect location. The view from the bridge is spectacular. For some reason the “Pioneer Woman” and “Fallen Heroes” [statues] seem to [have been] made for each other!

The dedication will take place on Sunday, June 5, 2011 at 4 PM at the site on Bridge Street, in Bigfork, MT.

Here is a slideshow of the process of creating the memorial, installing the statues, and the arduous stone and ground work. Many thanks to all involved!