BELTON, TX — The National Desert Storm Memorial Association has begun raising money to build a memorial at the National Mall in Washington D.C.
On Saturday, Belton brewery released a beer that was drafted to help raise money for the project.
"My dad was a marine co-officer and he was killed in the Gulf War in 1991," said Adriane Hodges, owner of the Bold Republic Brewing Company.
Hodges remembers her father, Jonathan Ross Edwards, also known as Captain Jack, who was a pilot killed during operation desert storm in 1991. The released beer was named after her father.
"Captain Jack is named after my dad. He was a life-long beer lover, and life of the party so we wanted to do something to honor him and a lot of the other veterans that served in Operation Desert Storm," Hodges said. "So we came up with a charity beer and 100 percent of the proceeds go to the National Desert Storm Memorial."
This act of charity is one that has spread through Texas and other states.
"We've had brewers in four states and three others here in Texas join and we hope that the momentum continues," she said.
Hodges hopes that more breweries will sell the beer and help raise money nationwide.
Kent Shivley, the Deputy Director of Planning and Design of the National Desert Storm War Memorial Association, said the organization needs $40 million to build the memorial, and have currently raised $8 million. Their hope is to present it on Veteran's Day in 2021.
Learn how you can help here.
