For the first time in his lifetime, Bob LaBrutta will share space on a monument that not only honors his military service, but also his grandfather, his father, and his two brothers, as USAA has revealed the National Military Monument, honoring all those who served.
The LaBrutta men’s names appear along with the more than 41 million Americans who served, dating all the way back to the Revolutionary War.
“This one’s special because it’s capturing everybody; everybody that has ever served our nation,” LaBrutta told Military Families Magazine.
LaBrutta, who retired as an Air Force major general after serving 38 years, currently works as USAA’s vice president of Survivorship, assisting members after the loss of a loved one.
LaBrutta’s grandfather served in WWII, his father served 27 years, and both of his brothers served in the Air Force.
“The legacy in our family tree is pretty deep,” he said.
The immersive monument sits at the base of the Lincoln Memorial, which opened to the public July 28th, with two giant digital flags and the names of more than 41 million who have served embedded in the stripes of the flags. Visitors can scan a QR code with their phone, input the name of the military member, and receive a code that will bring the name up on the side of the monument to honor that member.
“When that happened for me, when I got to see my dad’s name, that’s where the emotions came through – tears to my eyes, and my heart swelled with great pride,” LaBrutta said. “I think everybody who does something like that is going to experience it.”
With the monument being digital, the two flags appear to wave in the wind, serving as a reminder that behind every stripe is a person, a family and a story of service.
Those who can’t make the trek to the nation’s capital while the temporary monument is live can visit the monument’s website to search a name and view it digitally on the monument.
“You won’t get the same experience of being here, but you’ll get the same experience of knowing that that military member is going to be in that flag and etched in that flag,” LaBrutta said.
He invited anyone who searches and does not find their loved one’s name to add it to the monument, so long as they were honorably discharged from service.
“There’s not one single archive to capture all the names of former military, and so we may have missed some folks,” LaBrutta said. “And, if that’s the case, it’ll be an opportunity for us to go ahead and add that member’s name to the database. We’ll vet it, and then once we vet it, it’ll come out on the other side and future iterations of this monument will be updated with that name in it.”
The monument is slated to be onsite through Aug. 23rd, but LaBrutta and the USAA team are hopeful that the demand signal is so strong that it will be extended.
“I’d be remiss if I did not also commend the families that sacrificed so all those members can serve,” LaBrutta said. “This is about them just as much as it is about the military member.”
The National Military Monument opens to the public at 10:00 a.m. ET on Tuesday, July 28, and admission is free. Visitors can learn more, search for names and submit additional records by visiting USAA’s website.
“This is for all Americans to come out and celebrate,” LaBrutta said. “It’s not just for veterans and families. We want everybody to come out. This nation has supported its military for a long, long time, and so for them to come out and to experience this just like we do, that’s what this does. It helps them understand. It helps them reflect. It helps them honor the sacrifice and the service that these great Americans have done on their behalf.”
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