Gold Star mothers collect soil in France to restore long-lost Arlington memorial

NEAR FISMES, France — Soil collected from six World War I battlefields in France will soon be brought to Arlington National Cemetery, restoring a memorial that disappeared from the hallowed U.S. military burial ground nearly a century ago.

Gathering the soil for the memorial brought five American Gold Star mothers across northern and eastern France over the past week, retracing battlefields and cemeteries tied to some of the war’s bloodiest fighting involving U.S. troops.

Earth from each of the sites was originally sealed inside the Sacred Soil Marker, designed in the 1920s by French World War I veteran and sculptor Gaston Deblaize to provide a tangible remembrance for families of service members who died in the war.

Deblaize sent the monument to the United States in 1929 as a gesture of gratitude for American forces who helped turn the tide of World War I. It was installed at Arlington, while similar versions were erected in France.

But the U.S. monument did not last long. After less than a decade, it deteriorated from exposure to the elements and was removed in 1938, gradually fading from public awareness.

Frederic Drujon of the Croix de Guerre association signs soil samples collected in Belleau Wood, France, with Ryan Hegg of the United War Veterans Council. The samples must be sterilized before entering the United States to prevent any pathogens from spreading. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

For the five Gold Star mothers, the restoration effort carries a deeply personal motivation: preserving remembrance of the sacrifices of those who, like their sons, served and died for the United States.

“It would be really nice if 100 years from now, people are still commemorating my son,” said Teresa Bullock, whose son, Army Staff Sgt. Christopher Webb, was killed in Iraq in 2007.

At a roadside site near Fismes, which saw heavy fighting involving American troops during World War I, one of the mothers knelt beside the edge of a field and scooped dirt into a small plastic bag while others looked on quietly.

Their trip sprang from the initiative of French military historian Andre Rakoto, who became aware of the marker’s existence two years ago when speaking with the president of an association dedicated to preserving Deblaize’s work.

Inspired by this information, Rakoto reached out to the United War Veterans Council and, with help from the American Gold Star Mothers, worked to confirm that the monument had once stood at Arlington.

Gold Star Mother Jennifer Jackman visits the grave of fellow Kansan Marine Cpl. Bert Ames at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery, France, on May 16, 2026. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

Verification was achieved through archival records, which cleared the way for the go-ahead on the restoration project.

“It struck me that this whole story was forgotten,” Rakoto said. “And I thought how great it would be to offer that monument to Arlington again.”

Several Gold Star mothers were asked to help gather the soil as a way to connect the sacrifice of World War I troops with the families of those lost in more recent wars.

“To redo this monument in honor of these troops is just amazing,” said Jennifer Jackman, whose son Marine 1st Lt. Ryan Jackman died in 2007 while preparing to lead his platoon overseas. “We need to remember the past to go forward.”

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