New London Community Dedicates Sculpture To Fallen Soldier

NEW LONDON, Minn. (WCCO) -- A New London family is remembering their fallen hero through the completion of one of his passion projects.

On Sunday, the dedication of a memorial site and the unveiling of a sculpture were held in honor of fallen soldier Ryane Clark. Clark was the force behind a new DNR parking lot in the community.

He pushed for the project after a friend died while biking along the road. Clark was killed in Afghanistan, but his parents worked to see his project through.  Now that it's finished, they say all they feel is relief.

"Lots of emotions. I do feel a little relieved that we've finally got this completed. And we had a great crowd today," Rick Clark said.

"I'm relieved. I'm so proud of the community for coming out and supporting us and supporting the boys. You know, they were classroom friends, it is a great community to be in, and I'm just so proud of them," Tracy Clark said.

Ryane Clark pushed for 11 years to see the parking lot built.