But once the chance was gone, it was gone forever. "I never really knew Dad," said Gibbs, who's had to rely on other sources to learn more about his father and World War II. Starting this weekend, however, late Army Maj.
Charles Gibbs will finally get a chance to tell his story, at least in a sense. A career Army officer and veteran of WWII and Korea, he is among several Oklahoma WWII veterans whose stories are highlighted at Legacy of Liberty Memorial Park at Monkey Island's Shangri-La Resort . The walk-through exhibit park, which had its grand opening Friday, honors the Oklahomans who helped win WWII by sharing bits of their stories alongside some dramatic visual aids: a collection of restored WWII vehicles and weaponry.
Eddy Gibbs, Tulsa businessman and Shangri-La owner, said the park has been in the works for a long time, and is a passion project for him and a small team of his employees and friends. The grand opening Friday was everything he hoped it could be, and included his first chance to see one special item in its permanent place. "They just got it erected this morning, just in time for the opening," he said of a bronze statue of his father in uniform, which is posed beside a vintage Army jeep.
The statue of Charles Gibbs is one of a handful of statues of Oklahoma veterans in the park. Another one is of a fellow Checotah resident, Paul Henry Carr, who died aboard his ship while leading his gun crew in a valiant last stand against their attackers. Sculptor Fred Hopp.
