[connatix_element_embed script_id=c4f3e61ffcad4977800497f33a498c7f player_id=7bc491b4-922b-4e8d-b1b1-150648e80442 video_id=f7922e8e-0d27-4dd3-b44a-73bc29bf867e align=right]

Hundreds of people gathered along Pennsylvania Avenue in Northwest D.C. Friday for the unveiling of a nearly 60-foot sculpture wall honoring those who served in World War I.

“It feels amazing to be here. … They invited me to be sort of like a mascot of the project, and I couldn’t be prouder. This is so moving. The story behind it is magnificent,” actor Kelsey Grammer said as he choked back tears.

A Soldier’s Journey, a 58-foot bronze sculpture wall that has been in the works for four-and-half years, was unveiled at the National World War I memorial near the White House Friday evening.

“This is really about what that sculpture stands for and who it celebrates and reveres, and those are the veterans. And it’s a sculpture for we, the people. Ultimately I’m a spokesperson, because bronze doesn’t talk,” Sabin Howard, the artist behind the 25-ton sculpture, told WTOP.

Retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey, told WTOP he was pleased the veterans of World War I are being honored: “The sacrifice of 118,000 killed and a couple 100,000 wounded changed the world for the better forever.”

Those who are behind the memorial previously told WTOP they feel that the location — between 14th and 15th streets Northwest, right across Pennsylvania Avenue from the Willard Hotel — actually provides a better home for the memorial than the National Mall does.

[custom_gallery]