Rockafeller Memorial Video

Through mutual friends at Surfari Charters, we had the extreme fortune to meet Michael Malone. Michael is a police officer in Wall Township, New Jersey and shared with us his incredible story of a chance encounter with a World War II hero. The man, Harry Rockafeller, had recently died and Michael wanted to raise money to build a statue. The Rockafeller Memorial will honor Harry and other war heroes.

A Story Worth Chasing

As soon as we heard the story we knew that we had to be a part of it. So we jumped on a plane and headed to New Jersey. We hit the ground running and recorded footage at the police station, at Harry’s house, at the cemetery, and all over the rest of Wall Township.

A Project Unlike Anything We’ve Ever Been a Part Of

Michael did an amazing job recounting the story and was a pleasure to work with. He, his wife, and the entire Wall Township Police Department were incredibly helpful. They really went out of their way to help us capture the footage. It was truly an honor to be a part of.

A Story of Friendship

The project became more than just telling Harry’s story and then asking for donations for the statue — It became the story of a friendship. As Michael says near the end of the video, “He’s from the Greatest Generation, but I like to call him my Greatest Friend.”

Side Note

We’d also like to give a shout out to Rook Coffee for keeping us going during our trip. And to Michael for shipping some additional coffee beans to us once we returned to Austin and were dealing with Rook-withdrawal.