Virginia Beach Monarch Memorial

The Virginia Beach Monarch Memorial is dedicated to the twelve victims of the May 31, 2019 mass shooting in Building Two at the Virginia Beach Municipal Center. The memorial is located in Bugg Plaza between Patricia W. and J. Douglas Perry Library and the Batten Arts and Letters Building on the Old Dominion University (ODU) campus.

History

The groundbreaking for the memorial took place in October 2019 with Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer in attendance. The memorial is shaped like the sun in the Virginia Beach city seal, with 12 rays of light radiating outward. Each ray represents one of the victims of the attack and contains a plaque. At the center of the sun is a water fountain. The rays extending from the center are different lengths that correspond with the length of service with Virginia Beach. Six of the rays are blue to represent the victims that attended ODU while the rest of them are gold. Those that attended ODU will have a crown on their plaque with their degree year, for the rest, a depiction of a lily, the official flower of Virginia Beach, is displayed.

References

1. Garvey, Joe. Old Dominion University Breaks Ground for Virginia Beach Monarch Memorial, News @ ODU, Old Dominion University, 2019 October 25, Accessed 2021 October 29.