Fullerton gathered at Hillcrest Park on the morning of Tuesday, September 29, to rededicate a memorial that, not long ago, was quietly falling apart. The ceremony reminds us that civic advocacy doesn’t always look dramatic. Sometimes it’s one person showing up to public meetings, again and again, to say something is worth saving.

After World War II, Fullertonians honored their war dead with a memorial in Hillcrest Park, inscribing the names of the 54 local residents who died on a massive cross section of a sequoia tree. Erected in 1946, the memorial carries names recorded by the Izaak Walton League, a lasting record of local residents who served. But it had slowly weathered over the years.

Jensen Hallstrom is no stranger to Fullerton’s green and historic spaces. As a Parks and Recreation commissioner, he presented a review of the city’s heritage trees, which he defined by exceptional size, age, and historical connections. He has also written about local landmarks for the Fullerton Observer, including a piece on the oak planted by Fullerton High’s senior class in 1914. Here are links to two articles of interest: Parks and Rec Commission Notes on Hillcrest,  Articles by Jensen Hallstrom

In April, speaking as a former commissioner, Hallstrom raised the deteriorating WWII memorial at a Parks and Recreation meeting and stressed the need to maintain the structure, and Public Works then met with the Hillcrest Park Ad Hoc Committee to assess its condition. Parks and Rec Commission Notes April 2026

By July, the work was underway. At the July 21 City Council meeting, Hallstrom reported that the restoration of the Sequoia Memorial was nearly complete, that the memorial was now more structurally sound, and that much of its decayed wood had been filled with resin. City Council Notes from July 21, 2026 meeting: Public Comments

He didn’t stop there. He pointed out that 55 memorial trees are missing from Hillcrest Park, one planted for each Fullerton resident who died in the war, and that the city had not maintained the grove to the standards a redwood grove needs in Southern California. He noted that the last tree died in 2015, and that even the remaining stumps were ground up a few years ago despite posing no hazard. His ask was concrete: a community meeting before any replanting work, so the process would be public and transparent. In addition to concerns about the monument, Hallstrom also raised alarms about safety issues in the park, specifically the absence of guardrails along the east-side road near the Izaak Walton League Cabin.

Jensen told the Observer via text that the city took the safety concern seriously. “The city took action and promptly repaired the guardrails.”

Hallstrom’s approach offers a template. He brought expertise, citing a 1996 report by a Riverside landscape architect that documented soil compaction and invasive ivy harming the surviving redwoods. He pointed to a workable model, noting that OC Parks successfully manages a 241-tree redwood grove at Carbon Canyon Park. And he kept returning, turning a single concern into sustained public attention.

Today, thanks to a careful restoration, the memorial again stands as a fitting tribute to the servicemen whose names it bears. Hallstrom was one voice among many who care about Hillcrest Park, but his persistence shows how residents can move a city from neglect to action. The next test is the grove itself.