From concept to completion, the Cobar Miners Memorial has been a dream of local resident, Barry Knight, for almost seven years.
The Cobar Miners Memorial finally became a reality on Saturday when Barry joined Feder-al Member for Parkes Mark Coulton and Co-bar’s deputy mayor, Jarrod Marsden, to offi-cially open the memorial, which has been built at a total cost of $970,000.
The memorial pays homage to those who have been killed in mining accidents in Cobar and those who have died from mining related illnesses.
For Barry, the project had been a personal legacy prompted by the loss of a good mate, Harry Marshall, who was killed in a mining accident at the CSA Mine in 1973 when he was just 20 years old.
Being a longtime Cobar resident, Barry said he and his family also have connections with a number of other names that appear in the me-morial.
Mr Coulton praised Barry’s vision and com-mitment to build the memorial which he said will commemorate and safeguard Cobar’s min-ing history.
“The new memorial will be a drawcard for tourists, educating visitors to the area about past tragedies that have occurred within the mines,” Mr Coulton said.
Cr Marsden also praised the efforts of Barry, his committee, the community, and all levels of government in helping to build the Cobar Min-ers Memorial.
“The memorial is an amazing edition to Co-bar and something that we can all be proud of,” Cr Marsden said.
Members of the official party for the opening of the Cobar Miners Memorial on Saturday, Colby Lawrence, Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton, Barry Knight, Reverend Graham Mcleod and deputy mayor Jarrod Marsden. See Pages 2 and 3 for more photos from the opening.