The city of Peoria celebrated the unveiling of the Centennial Plaza Decades Walk expansion project, which is a new, vertical monument that honors historic local, state and national events that occurred between 2013 and 2021.
“Peoria’s Centennial Plaza was created to celebrate the 100th anniversary of our great state. The Decades Walk is Peoria’s unique display of the rich history we have as a community, as a state, and as a nation,” said Mayor Cathy Carlat. “This expansion of the Decades Walk gives our residents the opportunity to discover and honor our history at their leisure as they enjoy the beauty of the surroundings.”
The first phase of the Centennial Plaza Decades Walk was unveiled in 2012 in coordination with the state of Arizona’s centennial celebration, featuring historic events from 1912 through 2012. The expansion builds upon the first phase with a new, vertical monument that honors events that occurred from 2013 through 2021.
New landscaping, signage and directional wayfinding has been added, along with an additional monument that allows for future expansion.
Patrick and Teri Caserta, Brandon's parents, were in attendance. They continue to fight for mental health in the Armed Forces, as the deadline to implement the new rules nears. The Brandon Act was signed into federal law last year, and allows service members who experience mental health issues to confidentially self-report and receive access to a mental health evaluation and appropriate care.
The Caserta's said they are very touched and honored that The Brandon Act was added to Peoria's Decades Wall. It shows how Mayor Carlat and the city support their citizens, they said.
"Brandon died helping others and this is why we created The Brandon Act. Our service members deserve to get mental health treatment without going through their chain of command and without retaliation," Teri said. "We know The Brandon Act will save lives so no other service member has to go through what Brandon did and most of all so no other family has to go through what we have. We thank Mayor Carlat and Peoria for honoring Brandon and The Brandon Act."
The Centennial Plaza Decades Walk is located at Peoria’s Centennial Park, 9875 N. 85th Ave.
Meet Philip Haldiman is an award-winning journalist who most recently took first place for investigative reporting in 2023 from Arizona Newspapers Association. He joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2015, covering Sun City West his first year. Since 2016, he has covered the city of Peoria. Prior to coming to INI, he was a reporter with The Arizona Republic for seven years, covering numerous cities throughout the Valley. Before that, he was a freelance writer.
Community: Haldiman spearheads the Peoria Independent Hometown Heroes Awards program, honoring local individuals and businesses that give back to the community. He has hosted local candidate forums over the years and is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists. Haldiman also served as a member of the Journalism Program Community Advisory Board at Glendale Community College. Outside journalism, Haldiman served as a member of the city of Peoria Complete Count Committee for the Census, 2019-2020. Lastly, he has served as a member of his HOA governing board since 2021.
Education: Arizona State University with a BA in Journalism and Mass Communications and a BA in Theater.
Random Fact: Haldiman is a fourth-generation Arizonan as well as wrote and produced an autobiographical comic book about his time spent in Hollywood and his life as a cult film star.
Hobbies: He enjoys hiking Arizona’s mountainous landscapes and is currently working on a play for the stage.
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