The New Jersey World War II Memorial, located across from the State House in Trenton, received its first design award – a Merit Award in the Parks Category – from the 46th New Jersey Concrete Awards Committee.

      This is the second award the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs has received for its innovatively designed Memorials for New Jersey's veterans.

      More than 1,200 cubic yards of concrete, which translates to more than 4.8 million pounds, was used to build the Memorial.

      The $7.6 million memorial is comprised of 3,000 pieces of granite, a one-ton statue of Lady Victory and a half-ton statue of The Lone Soldier; both pieces were designed by sculptor Thomas Jay Warren, who previously sculpted the centerpiece for the New Jersey Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the New Jersey Korean War Veterans Memorial. Groundbreaking occurred on March 15, 2008, with DHM Design Firm and Neshaminy Construction Inc., responsible for construction. The dedication ceremony for the Memorial took place on Nov. 11, 2008 with more than 1,900 people in attendance. The Korean Memorial was also the recipient of an award from New Jersey Chapter American Concrete Institute.