SWAMPSCOTT - More than 1,000 people turned out to honor Jennifer Harris at her funeral on Monday, but that won't be the last of the tributes to the town's fallen Marine.
Veterans' agent Jim Schultz plans to ask selectmen next week to name an intersection in memory of the 28-year-old captain and helicopter pilot.
Schultz said he will file a request next week to dedicate the intersection of Essex Street and Stetson Avenue in memory of Harris, who died when her helicopter was shot down in Iraq on Feb. 7.
The intersection is already scheduled to undergo $250,000 in renovations, including the construction of a traffic island where a memorial to Harris could be located.
"That's one of the reasons I picked that intersection," Schultz said.
If selectmen approve, the intersection will become the second in the town of 15,000 to be named after a Swampscott native killed in Iraq. In November, the town dedicated the intersection of Essex and Burrill streets in memory of Army Spc. Jared Raymond, who was driving a tank that was blown up by an improvised explosive device on Sept. 19.
"If this goes through," Schultz said, "Jared would be flanking one side of the new high school, and Jennifer would be flanking the other end."
Schultz said the town would place a bronze marker on the island similar to one used to honor Raymond and other veterans around town. Two anonymous donors paid the $2,500 cost of the marker for Raymond, Schultz said. He's hoping others will step up to help pay for the Harris memorial - "even if we get a bunch of small donations," Schultz said.
Schultz, a Swampscott police detective and retired Marine, said veterans have sold about 100 decals in memory of Harris, with a suggested donation of $10 apiece. The money is being turned over to a scholarship fund in Harris' name.
If the town OKs the plan for the intersection, Schultz said he would like to hold the dedication ceremony on Memorial Day.
Town Administrator Andrew Maylor said he foresees no problems with naming an intersection after Harris.
"If Jim Schultz says to me, 'This is what the family desires,' there would be every expectation that myself and the Board of Selectmen would be in favor of it," Maylor said.
Harris' name has already been memorialized by another group. The Swampscott-based Marine Corps League Detachment 871 has changed its named to the Capt. Jennifer Harris Marine Corps League.
Veterans' agent Jim Schultz plans to ask selectmen next week to name an intersection in memory of the 28-year-old captain and helicopter pilot.
Schultz said he will file a request next week to dedicate the intersection of Essex Street and Stetson Avenue in memory of Harris, who died when her helicopter was shot down in Iraq on Feb. 7.
The intersection is already scheduled to undergo $250,000 in renovations, including the construction of a traffic island where a memorial to Harris could be located.
"That's one of the reasons I picked that intersection," Schultz said.
If selectmen approve, the intersection will become the second in the town of 15,000 to be named after a Swampscott native killed in Iraq. In November, the town dedicated the intersection of Essex and Burrill streets in memory of Army Spc. Jared Raymond, who was driving a tank that was blown up by an improvised explosive device on Sept. 19.
"If this goes through," Schultz said, "Jared would be flanking one side of the new high school, and Jennifer would be flanking the other end."
Schultz said the town would place a bronze marker on the island similar to one used to honor Raymond and other veterans around town. Two anonymous donors paid the $2,500 cost of the marker for Raymond, Schultz said. He's hoping others will step up to help pay for the Harris memorial - "even if we get a bunch of small donations," Schultz said.
Schultz, a Swampscott police detective and retired Marine, said veterans have sold about 100 decals in memory of Harris, with a suggested donation of $10 apiece. The money is being turned over to a scholarship fund in Harris' name.
If the town OKs the plan for the intersection, Schultz said he would like to hold the dedication ceremony on Memorial Day.
Town Administrator Andrew Maylor said he foresees no problems with naming an intersection after Harris.
"If Jim Schultz says to me, 'This is what the family desires,' there would be every expectation that myself and the Board of Selectmen would be in favor of it," Maylor said.
Harris' name has already been memorialized by another group. The Swampscott-based Marine Corps League Detachment 871 has changed its named to the Capt. Jennifer Harris Marine Corps League.
John Sacherski, commander of Swampscott VFW Post 1240, said league members voted unanimously to change the name in a meeting on Monday night after Harris' funeral. The league has been in existence for about 15 years. About 50 to 75 former Marines on the North Shore are members, Sacherski said.
"A lot of members don't like changing names, but they did it in a heartbeat," he said.
"The outpouring (for Harris) has been outstanding," Sacherski said. "The community has stepped up to the plate on two occasions. We're a very tight-knit group."
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