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PA Veterans Garden

John McElligott
PA Veterans Garden

Created to be a place for reflection, the Garden features a wall of remembrance with bronze plaques representing each branch of the uniformed services. The centerpiece of the garden is a life-size bronze statue of a combat medic bandaging the wounds of a fallen soldier. The sculpture is titled “Life Savers Then … Caregivers Now” and serves as a reminder of the origins of the PA profession. The title of the statue is named after a 1980 poem written by Ken Harbert. The statue is a replica from one housed at the University of Utah. Funds were raised to make this replica by Don Pedersen, who then donated it to the PA History Society in 2007.

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The John McElligott PA Veterans Garden

The Garden honors PAs who have served or are currently serving in the uniformed services of our country, especially the former corpsmen and medics who were the first to become PAs and pioneered the profession over 55 years ago. The Garden is currently the ONLY veterans garden that honors strictly PA veterans. The Garden is located at the Stead Center in Durham, North Carolina. 

A Collaborative Effort

The Garden walkway and surrounding patio are filled with engraved named brick pavers that PAs or loved ones have donated to honor their service to our country. Each brick features the name of a PA, the logo of the branch they served in, and the dates of their service. If you are visiting the Garden and would like to know the location of your brick or that of a brick you purchased for another, please click here. The Stead Center will also have a location chart on the premises.

Brick Pavers Now Available

The PA History Society currently has a limited number of brick pavers available for engraving around the new garden fountain and walkway. The engraved bricks make an enduring gift or a distinguished tribute exclusively for U.S. Veteran & Uniformed Services PAs Engraved Brick Pavers:

  • 9″X9″ Brick Pavers
  • Includes PA Name, Branch, and Years of Service
  • $100 each ($10 extra for a personalized certificate)
  • Tax-deductible

To Order an Engraved Brick please visit our PAHx “Bricks R Us”  site here:  https://www.bricksrus.com/order/pahxvetgarden/

To download a Veterans Garden Brick Paver flyer to share with your friends, family or colleagues, please click here.