COME HONOR VETERANS AT ONCE-FORGOTTEN PARK.

Byline: DENNIS McCARTHY 

As parks go, it's not much, the Granada Hills Veterans Memorial Park.

It's only 38 paces across at its widest point, and there's no parking or restroom.

The only grass is a patch the size of a small front lawn, and there are only a few concrete benches to sit on if you want to.

But hardly anybody does, because hardly anybody ever comes to this little traffic-island park, unless they have a bus to catch. Then they sit on the sidewalk kiosk bus bench because it's more comfortable.

People drive by the park all the time, but only a handful know what's on the other side of the ``Welcome to Granada Hills'' sign that anchors this postage stamp of a park at Chatsworth Street and Zelzah Avenue.

Only a handful know that there are two plaques back there - one honoring all veterans of foreign wars, the other the 24 Granada Hills boys who went off to fight in the Vietnam War and never came home.

Nobody knows for sure how it happened, but over the years this little piece of land established in 1961 by Post 2323 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars as a community memorial became, instead, a community eyesore.

``This park was meant as a lasting memorial, but during the years it had fallen into a state of disrepair and (became) an eyesore,'' says Caroline East of the Granada Hills Chamber of Commerce.

Duncan Wilmore, commander of VFW Post 2323, which also erected a flagpole on the site in 1961, said the park ``just went to seed.''

``There were soda cans, fast-food wrappers and refuse left behind by people waiting for buses; the city stopped paying to have the grass mowed and watered; and, pretty much across the board, it fell into misuse and disuse,'' Wilmore said. ``There was just a community malaise about it.''

Not anymore. The malaise is over.

The Granada Hills Veterans Memorial Park is making a comeback, and it's only fitting that on Friday night at its coming-out party, an overlooked, mostly forgotten park will host one of the country's most overlooked, forgotten events of the year.

The day we are all supposed to pause and pay homage to the memory of this country's prisoners of war and soldiers missing in action - National POW/MIA Recognition Day.

``Renovating this memorial park has been a community effort by a lot of people, and all residents and businesses of Granada Hills should feel a little more pride in our corner,'' East says.

In recent months, the city has replanted the lawn, repaired the watering system and planted flowers that will be cared for by gardeners who work for the Ralphs shopping center across the street from the park.

The local VFW post has cleaned up the area and repainted the ``Welcome to Granada Hills'' sign. The company that cares for the kiosk bus stop also has agreed to keep the flagpole lighted 24 hours a day.

It is once again, Wilmore says, a memorial park worthy of its name. Worthy to host all the 17 VFW posts from throughout this region who will be coming to the park for a candlelight memorial ceremony beginning at 7 p.m. Friday.

The hourlong POW/MIA ceremony will feature color guards, a bugler and guest speakers, and the public is invited.

If you get the chance, spend a few minutes behind the ``Welcome to Granada Hills'' sign and take a look at the memorial plaque the local 4-H Club erected back in 1972 to 24 local boys who went off to war and never came home.

We promised then to remember them for this ultimate sacrifice, but somewhere along the line - like the tiny park they were memorialized in - we forgot all about it.

It's not too late to remember John Yager, Michael Barrett, John Bonffile, Roger Duce, Howard Varni, Patrick Golliher, Gregory Rice, John Penney, William Bradford, Larry Strouse and Richard Manemann.

Remember Frank Allener, Robert Easton, Malcolm Whiting, Goefrey Brown, Joseph Jacobs, Michael Uhlig, James McMurdo, Fred Barrett, Brent Baker, Glenn Blankenbiller, Peter Jakobsen, Carl Crowe and Karl Porter.