RUSSELLVILLE — More than 300 people gathered at the busiest intersection in town Friday to dedicate a park in memory of the six residents who died when American Airlines Flight 1420 crashed while landing in Little Rock in 1999.
The ceremony opened the newly finished Burris Memorial Plaza at the corner of Arkansas and Main streets and marked the second anniversary of the crash. About 30 of Flight 1420's 129 surviving passengers attended.
The park is named for Troy Burris, a local office-supply merchant who had met with banker Judy Thacker in May 1999 about making the prime corner spot a city green space. Thacker, a charter member of Main Street Russellville, hoped to seal the deal when she returned from leading a tour group to the British Isles.
She and 11 other members of the tour group were aboard when Flight 1420 crashed at Little Rock National Airport, Adams Field, during a thunderstorm just before midnight on June 1, 1999. The plane broke in half where most of the Russellville group were seated. Thacker died minutes after the crash.
Sue Gray and Mary Couch, former teachers who were beloved figures in the community, were seated at the point of impact in the row behind Thacker. Joyce and Gordon McLerran, a Texas couple who had retired to Crow Mountain and spent time traveling and supporting the arts, were behind them. Betty Ingram, a retired secretary who loved to garden, sat across the aisle. They all were among the 10 passengers who died.
Burris made his donation of land in their memory. "After all that happened, it seemed like the thing to do and the time to do it," he said.
As the names of each of the Russellville dead were read Friday, a man rang a hand bell, one tone for each.
The park features six benches covered by a curved arbor and flanked by evergreen trees. The benches face a bronze sculpture of a young boy and girl reaching skyward with doves. Six fountains at the base of the sculpture spray water at varying angles to represent the personalities of the victims.
A plaque reads: "Memorials cannot take away the sorrow, emptiness or pain, but they can make a place in time to express the value of lives lost, and assure the memory for years to come."
Burris estimated the park's size at 6,000 square feet. Its design is, in part, the work of Thacker's cousin.
Memorial planners said they could not estimate how much the park cost, although American Airlines contributed $40,000 to its construction and another $10,000 to the city's arts center.
American, based in Fort Worth, has offered to contribute to another memorial being built at the Little Rock airport, probably in time for the crash's third anniversary. But the survivors organizing that memorial have not accepted.
No mention was made of American on Friday, but the company's name did appear as a contributor on the dedication program. The airline's Little Rock manager, Greg Klein, spoke briefly with Main Street President Peggy Talkington and took a few photographs but did not participate in the ceremony.
Betsy McQuire, the Main Street board's executive director, said the group had struggled with American's role in the ceremony.
"It's true that their contribution was important to having this come together, but it's so awkward, because feelings about the airline run deep here among many people. These were beloved people in our community, and it still hurts a lot that they are gone," she said.
Talkington said she hoped the park would be a place of remembrance, comfort and peace. She and Thacker had been friends for decades.
Arnold Bowden, a survivor who was seated just behind his friend Gordon McLerran, was tearful as he read a poem he'd written about the trip. Afterward, he said his contribution to the memorial was six words that reminded him of six friends who had never made it home: kindness, loving, honesty, loyalty, friendly, giving.
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