Support the Tomcat Monument!
The official Dedication Ceremony for the first F-14 Tomcat Monument is scheduled for Wednesday 13 May 2020 
in the Naval Aviation Monument Park on 25th St. adjacent to the Boardwalk in Virginia Beach, VA. All donors are invited to the Dedication Ceremony and to the reception to be held Tuesday 12 May 2020 (details to follow). A second installation will be placed at the Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, FL. Exploratory plans for a West Coast site are underway.
Dateline, January 2020: Construction of the Monument is underway in the Ohio factory of Laser Imaging and Design, Inc. The Monument Association Board has also formally contracted with them for the Pensacola installation, with a tentative dedication date in late 2020.
Our construction deadlines require a mid-March 2020 cutoff date for all donors who want inscriptions on both monuments. Consider contributing today!
The final version of the laser engraved panels are shown here.
Latest word from Association President ADM ‘Bad Fred’ Lewis:
To Tomcat veterans and enthusiasts everywhere: When we began our journey of project design and fund raising to erect a monument to the F-14 community some ten months ago, we had very little data to show us how to assess our probability of success. We had said that it was our goal to erect a monument in Virginia Beach in the spring of 2020, and, that if resources from our capital campaign were sufficient, we would consider other locations (Pensacola and San Diego) as appropriate sites for erecting identical monuments.
Thanks to all of our generous donors we are very pleased to inform you that we have been very successful and have achieved our initial fund raising target. This original target was our estimate of what it would take to design, fabricate, transport, erect, and maintain a monument that would not only take your breath away but would be a lasting educational experience for all visitors. As it stands now, our current resources not only fund the Virginia Beach monument, they provide for enough to get us started down the road to resource the monument in Pensacola at the National Museum of Naval Aviation. We have been in contact with officials at the Naval Aviation Museum, and we are happy to report that they are overwhelmingly excited and supportive about having an F-14 monument at the Museum.
So the bottom line is that our capital campaign will continue. Given our experience to date we believe it reasonable to expect to have the monument in Pensacola dedicated in November 2020. As a point of clarification, each monument will be identical to include the donor names that were inscribed on the original monument with new donor names added as contributions are received.
As members of the organizing committee, participation in this project has been an exciting and challenging experience. We all accepted this commitment knowing that except for small administrative costs all other costs including personal travel and meeting expenses would be borne by each individual. We believe this to be a noble cause as we commemorate all the men and women involved in the design, manufacture, testing, operational employment, and maintenance of an airplane that has become iconic and legendary as the finest fighter to ever operate from the flight decks of our Navy’s aircraft carriers. In addition we believe the monument to be a fitting tribute to the lives and memory of those who made the ultimate sacrifice while flying the Tomcat. They will not be forgotten.
Anytime Baby!
Fred Lewis, RADM, USN (Ret)
LATEST OUTREACH
ADM ‘Bad Fred’ Lewis and CDR ‘Rattler’ Rucker discuss the Monument effort.
HOW TO DONATE
The Tomcat Monument will be funded by donations (made in US dollars) online via credit card through PayPal or by mail using the flyer below with a check to the F-14 Tomcat Monument Association.
Mach 2 Level – $1000
Mach 1 Level – $500
Afterburner Level – – $250
ALL AFTERBURNER, MACH 1 and MACH 2 DONORS WILL HAVE THEIR NAME, CALL SIGN (as appropriate), RANK, and SERVICE INSCRIBED ON THE MONUMENT (up to 30 characters, spaces and punctuation included).
Other donations are welcome!
IMPORTANT DONOR INFORMATION
If using PayPal, YOU MUST send an email with your postal address, PHONE NUMBER and inscription information (Name, Call Sign (as appropriate), Rank, and Service to
donate@tomcatmonument.org
COMMEMORATIVE COIN
A commemorative fin flash coin, shown below, is now available for purchase with all proceeds going to support the Monument effort. Purchase price is $20.00ea plus $10.00 flat S&H for delivery within the USA.
Contact donate@tomcatmonument.org
