T-R PHOTO BY MIKE DONAHEY
A Submarine Veterans Highway sign located approximately one block west of the Iowa Veterans Home Summit Street entrance in Marshalltown. The highway will be officially dedicated Oct. 14 in ceremonies at the local Iowa Veterans Home and at state capitol complex Des Moines.

A project years in the making will soon come to fruition.

The Submarine Veterans Highway will be dedicated 9:30 a.m. Oct. 14 in front of Malloy Hall at the local Iowa Veterans Home.

The highway begins on the west end of IVH on Summit Street, where it proceeds to the state capitol grounds in Des Moines.

The event is free of charge and the public is invited to the outdoor event.

Attendees are asked to bring lawn chairs.

IVH Commandant Timon Oujiri will make remarks, as will several submarine veterans.

Scheduled to attend are submarine veterans from Cedar Rapids as well as state Sen. Jeff Edler of State Center, state Rep. Dean Fisher of Garwin and state Rep. Mark Smith of Marshalltown .

The joint Veterans of Foreign Wars-Ameridan Legion Honor Guard will present colors.

A ribbon will be cut to officially celebrate opening of the highway.

After the one-hour long ceremony concludes, submarine veterans and others will have lunch in the Bob Atha Dining Room at IVH.

Additionally, the group is expected to visit the John Marino Memorial Submarine Library at IVH.

Marino was a Marshalltown native, born in 1918 who perished May 20, 1939, on the USS Squalus SS 192 off Portsmouth N.H.

He was buried in the local Riverside Cemetery with a small 6-inch by 8-inch marker.

On May 23, 2001, World War II submarine veterans replaced the small marker at Marino’s gravesite with a larger stone and a plaque with details about his death.

The Marino Library was dedicated at IVH Oct. 1, 2005.

At 12:30 p.m. veterans will drive the SVH to Des Moines.

It is a 52-mile route with significance to submariners.

During World War II, 52 U.S. Submarines were lost, in most cases all hands perished.

More than 3,500 men were lost.

A special ceremony will feature Lt. Gov. Adam Gregg laying a wreath with a submarine veteran at the Memorial for the S-36.

The S-36 was lost Jan.20, 1942 on her second patrol in Makassar Strait, Indonesia.

Richard Kennelley and spouse Connie Kennelley of Marshalltown are coordinating the IVH event.

Richard Kennelley is a 22-year submarine veteran, and is joined by fellow submariners and Iowans Jerry Luedtke, Bob Kirby and David Farran.

I encourage Marshalltown residents to attend the highway dedication to help us honor the 52 submarines and personnel who were lost,” Luedtke said.