Nine men from Richmond have received the Medal of Honor. They served in four conflicts, from the Civil War to Vietnam, in the Army, the Navy, and the Marine Corps. One of them was born into slavery in this city. Few people who live here could name any of them.
Jimmie Monteith was one of the nine, a Thomas Jefferson High School graduate killed on Omaha Beach leading his men off the sand. Monumental Honor began with his story and grew to take in all nine. In September 2022 we made the case in the Richmond Times-Dispatch that the city should honor them together, and Ian Berry, a former Army officer, incorporated the organization as a 501(c)(3) the following year.
We have awarded $15,000 in scholarships to Richmond-area students, painted a mural on West Main Street with the artist Hamilton Glass, and adopted the stretch of Route 5 that carries the Powhatan Beaty Memorial Bridge. Every December we lay wreaths at Richmond National Cemetery.
Richmond still has no single place where all nine are honored together. That is what we are building toward.
Our mission
Three out of four Americans cannot say what the Medal of Honor means. We are out to make Richmond the city where everyone can.
These nine were as different as Americans can be, in race, in service, in era. What they shared was courage, sacrifice, and integrity. Their stories belong to every Richmonder, and they bring the city together.
We keep the legacy alive by putting it to work: scholarships and awards for students who live these values, named for the men who defined them.
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