Portage County: Veterans Memorial Plaza, Grave Markers and Memorial Day
The county's Veterans' Memorial Plaza on the Ravenna courthouse lawn takes inscribed bricks at $100 and $250, the commission splits the cost of replacing worn grave markers with the county (132 replaced in a year at $300 to $400 each), and the $500-a-post Memorial Day allowance runs through the commissioners under Revised Code 307.66.
Also called: memorial, memorial plaza, brick, grave marker, headstone, Memorial Day, flags, Purple Heart, Green Light, Veterans Day, 307.66.
The memorial. The Portage County Veterans' Memorial Plaza stands on the front lawn of the county courthouse in Ravenna, dedicated November 11, 2007 as the county's first countywide memorial to veterans of every branch, built with HUD community development funds secured by then-Representative Tim Ryan and sponsored by the Board of Commissioners. Inscribed bricks are ordered on the county's form: an 8-by-8 brick is $100 with six lines of twenty characters, a 12-by-12 is $250 with eight lines of fourteen, giving the veteran's name, rank (not pay grade), dates of service, branch and war, in memory of or in support of; payment goes to the Portage Community Bank, 1311 East Main Street, Ravenna.
Grave markers. The commission replaces the county's worn veterans' grave markers alongside the county: director Truman told the commissioners in May 2026 that the two offices had agreed the commission would replace half of them, and 132 markers were replaced last year at about $300 to $400 each. He added that many veterans do not qualify for a VA marker - too little service, or service in the wrong window - and the commission means to marker those too.
Memorial Day. Under Revised Code 307.66 the county pays each chartered veterans post up to $500 a year toward Memorial Day expenses. The commission collects the posts' statements - the commissioners acknowledged the April 2026 requests for advance funds and the July 2026 notarized expense letters - and pays the posts.
Around the year. The county's Veterans Day ceremony is on the courthouse lawn each November 11 (the commissioners lit the county's buildings green for Operation Green Light, November 4 to 11, 2025, by resolution 25-0612); Portage County was designated a Purple Heart County with a ceremony at Ravenna's Pocket Park on May 28, 2026; and the commission holds a Thanksgiving dinner and a Holiday Heroes celebration at VFW Post 1055 in Ravenna, with gift trees in the office, and takes its table to the Mantua Ox Roast and the Ravenna Balloon-A-Fair. The Dog Warden's office gives veterans presenting its disabled-veteran form a free dog licence and a free adoption, and OhioMeansJobs Portage County runs veteran employment services under WIOA from 253 South Chestnut Street.
Thresholds
Thresholds for Portage County: Veterans Memorial Plaza, Grave Markers and Memorial Day
Gate
Rule
A Portage County veteran's grave, marker or memorial brick
Bricks are ordered on the county form; marker replacement runs through the commission office (330-297-3545); the $500 Memorial Day allowance goes to chartered posts on filed expense reports. No rating is needed.
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Disclaimer
VetTOC is not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or the Department of Defense. Information is for reference only and is not an eligibility determination. Verify with VA, the relevant state or territory, or an accredited VSO.