Masonic War Memorial vandalized in Malden Park

The Masonic Memorial monument is seen dumped in a pond at Malden Park in Windsor, Ont. in an act of vandalism. (Source: David Woodman)

Efforts are underway to repair the Masonic Memorial in Malden Park vandalized over the weekend. The 22-year-old freemasons war memorial was broken in two, dragged a couple of hundred feet and thrown into the nearby pond.

No suspects have been identified, and Windsor police welcome any information from the public regarding the crime.

Gene Lotz, a member of the committee that built the memorial, said this took a lot of effort to do and has great meaning in the community.

“They're here to reinforce our memories of the individuals that were lost during some of the great tragedies of history,” said Lotz. “It's important for the public to savour that, to remember that."

The memorial cost $85,000 to construct.

The names of local freemasons who served in Canada’s armed forces during the two World Wars are inscribed on a marble tablet.

The damaged granite marker had inscribed an Old Testament passage — Ecclesiastes 12:7 — as a reverential tribute to our Canadian heroes:

Then shall the dust return to the Earth as it was,

And the Spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

Lotz hopes that with the aid of the city and the community, the monument will be restored to its former glory by the spring of 2023.