The fountain, which is a replica of one built in the 1800s, was paid for through a $10,000 donation from Dayton law firm Coolidge Wall, along with other local businesses and individuals, Froats said. Coolidge Wall is a descendent of a law firm Gunckel founded in the 1800s.
Judge Walter Rice, who has long been involved with the project, said he first found out about the grotto in a picture postcard as a child. As an adult, he went to visit a soldier at the VA and asked staff members where the garden was.
“I might have asked them where was the nearest shuttle to Mars,” Rice said. “Nobody knew where it was.”
Since the grotto reopened last year, it has become a local tourist destination and the site of church group events and weddings, according to Glenn Costie, director of the VA Medical Center.
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley said she could feel the good effects of the garden while she was in it.
“Even on a gray day like today, I think we can all see the beauty of this place,” she said. “I think a lot of us can feel it lowering our blood pressure.”
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