POUGHKEEPSIE – The traffic circle at the intersection of Smith Street, Creek Road, and Salt Point Turnpike was renamed Corey Ingram Circle in 2018. The Poughkeepsie native was killed while serving in the Navy aboard the USS John McCain in 2017 off the coast of Singapore. On Thursday, dozens gathered to officially dedicate the memorial inside the roundabout as well as unveil the first five monuments along the neighboring Champions Walk.
The project, according to Mario Johnson of the Poughkeepsie Alliance, was years in the making and pays tribute to Ingram and five members of the Poughkeepsie community who made significant contributions to the city and its residents. “Petty Officer Ingram sacrificed his life for us and the monument in the roundabout is our show of respect for Corey and his parents, Jacqueline and Jerry,” he said. “The five markers are dedicated to Poughkeepsie residents who have made tremendous contributions to our youth and our city as a whole.”
Mayor Yvonne Flowers noted that Champions Walk and the Corey Ingram Circle provide a significant marker for people entering and leaving the city on the north side. “Each of the five honorees had a major influence on my life,” the mayor said. Flowers credited Penny Lewis for paving the way for women of color to get involved in government and paving the way for the next generation of public servants. The late Lorraine Roberts, according to Flowers, was the teacher who encouraged Flowers to study bookkeeping, leading to her successful career in the field. Joining Lewis and Roberts are the late Tree Arrington, founder of REAL Skills Network the late Barbara Jeter-Jackson – longtime elected official in the city and county and Wesley Lee, founder of Saving At Risk Youth for Corporate America (SARCA).
With Jerry and Jacqueline Ingram in the audience, Senator Rob Rolison recalled meeting the parents on the day Corey died. Rolison, the mayor at the time, was accompanied by then-Councilman Matt McNamara, a Navy veteran who represented the Ingram family on the council. “Corey brought us together,” Rolison said, adding “Corey brought this community together.”
Dutchess County Executive Sue Serino acknowledged the presence of several members of VFW Post 170 who were there to support their friends, the Ingrams. “The men standing there are true role models,” she said, pointing to the men standing in the back of the crowd. The county executive called the 8-foot-tall monuments along the walk and the iron sculpture in the roundabout “The perfect welcome to the City of Poughkeepsie.”
Photo gallery from the event:
