"In complete truth, it is not perfect," Jim Martin, chief engineer of the Anthem Veterans Memorial, said of the solar spotlight that draws a crowd to Anthem Community Park every November 11. His explanation was republished by FOX 13 in 2015. He went on to say that the only way to make it perfect would be to move the ellipses slightly every year, "which is really not a recommended option."
That admission explains why the memorial works. The sunlight that falls on the Great Seal at 11:11 a.m. was never aimed at one exact instant. It was aimed at a hundred years of instants, averaged out, with a small margin built in on either side. This November the memorial turns 15. That puts it 15 years into a calculation that runs to 2111, and Martin will be at the podium to talk about it.
A fixed structure chasing a moving sun
At 11:11 a.m. each Veterans Day, the sun's rays pass through five pillars, one for each military branch, and form a spotlight on a mosaic of the Great Seal of the United States. Each pillar has an elliptical opening for the light to pass through. The sun's position at a given clock time on a given date shifts a little from year to year, and the pillars never move.
Martin described the starting point as two fixed angles: an azimuth, the horizontal angle from north to the center of the sun at 11:11 a.m. on November 11, and an altitude, the vertical angle from the horizon. Together they set where the light lands on the Seal. Then came the correction he couldn't avoid:
"Each year, the center of the sun is slightly offset from other years by just a few horizontal or vertical arc-seconds relative to the timing of the required azimuth/altitude position of the sun... it cannot be perfectly aligned at precisely 11:11:11 a.m. every year due to the static alignment of the memorial."
His team's answer was to calculate the perfect solar position for every year from 2011 to 2111. Across that century, the moment of perfect illumination moves back and forth in a cycle somewhere between 11:10:58 a.m. and 11:11:22 a.m., a spread of 24 seconds. They set the pillars' angles to the statistical mean of that data. That way the spotlight lands within plus or minus 12 seconds of 11:11:11 a.m. in any given year, and the margin also absorbs other small variations. Martin added that they checked the alignment 500 years out, and "if the structure is still standing, it will work."
So the honest version of the 11:11 moment is a window of about 24 seconds near 11:11:11, not a single tick of the clock. Anyone holding a phone up to the Seal is watching a target that was set by averaging a century.
Why the pillars step down the way they do
The geometry only holds if every opening stays exactly where it was set, so the physical design carries the math. Artist Renee Palmer-Jones designed the memorial. Martin handled the engineering with Oscar Oliden and Steve Rusch, and Haydon Building Corporation built it, according to a 2014 Core77 feature on the design. The five pillars are marble, each cut with an elliptical opening, and together they funnel the light down to the round mosaic set into the brickwork.
The pillars are staggered in size, and each branch seal sits on a pillar in the order the Department of Defense prescribes for precedence. That means the ceremonial order of the branches and the optical path of the light share the same structure. The ellipses have to line up for the sun at one angle on one morning, and the seals have to follow a fixed protocol. The design meets both in a single row of stone.
Around the Seal is the Circle of Honor. A 2023 preview in the Daily Independent described the Seal as a glass mosaic surrounded by 5,400 veteran commemorative pavers in the expanded Circle. That count is from 2023, and it keeps growing. The Anthem Community Council says paver sales and fundraising are still going on.
Year 15 of a 100-year calculation
The memorial was dedicated on November 11, 2011, and became an Arizona Historic Landmark six months later. November 11, 2026 falls on a Wednesday. That makes it the 16th time the spotlight has hit the Seal on a ceremony morning, counting dedication day, and the first anniversary that comes with a theme built around the number. The Council's October 8, 2026 announcement titles the ceremony "Legacy of Service: A Nation at 250 and A Memorial at 15."
This year's speakers line up with that theme. Jim Martin, the civil engineer behind the solar math, is scheduled to give an address about the memorial. Retired Rear Admiral Ron Tucker, whom the Council credits as instrumental in conceiving the memorial, will give the keynote. In the Council's announcement, Tucker called it an honor to take part in a ceremony "also celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Anthem Veterans Memorial." The two people most responsible for the idea and the geometry will share one program, 15 years into the century Martin's team modeled.
The rest of the lineup, from the same notice:
- Emcee: Command Sergeant Major Joshua Holton, U.S. Army
- Opening remarks: Anthem Community Council Board Chair Dave Duckworth and Director Aaron Baker
- Invocation: Pastor Lee Davis of Kings Church in Anthem
- Special music: Musical Theater of Anthem
- Wreath placement and a nonprofit booth: Youth for Troops
- Support: Sandra Day O'Connor Air Force JROTC, under Major Vaughan Whited and Master Sergeant John Michael Badey
The Veterans Service Award will also be presented. It recognizes an individual, group, business, or organization that has shown extraordinary service to the community's veterans. The ceremony is organized by the Anthem Community Council with the Anthem Way Foundation.
How the morning has been timed, year by year
The ceremony's start time has shifted over recent years. The 11:11 finish has stayed put, since the program is built backward from the one fixed point in it.
| Year | Breakfast | Ceremony | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023, a Saturday | 8:15 to 10 a.m. | 10 to 11:15 a.m. | Daily Independent, Sept. 2023 |
| 2024, a Monday | Light breakfast from 9 a.m. | Event 9 to 11:15 a.m. | Daily Independent, Oct. 2024 |
| 2026, a Wednesday | 9 to 10 a.m., for purchase | Official ceremony at 10 a.m. | Anthem Community Council, Oct. 2026 |
For 2026, the Council lists music, videos, nonprofit booths, and remarks between 10 a.m. and the alignment, with the morning ending when the light reaches the Seal at 11:11. Given Martin's numbers, the most precise moment in this year's program will come somewhere between 11:10:58 and 11:11:22.
What hasn't been published for 2026
Some practical details are not in any announcement so far. Here is where things stand as of October 12.
- Parking. The 2026 notice gives no parking or shuttle plan. In 2023 the Daily Independent listed parking at the lot off Anthem Way, at the soccer fields south of the memorial off Gavilan Peak Parkway, and at the Community Center off Freedom Way. The lot next to the memorial was held for ADA-credentialed parking and security, with ADA drop-off allowed once it filled. That was the plan for a past year, and it may change.
- Seating. The 2023 preview said seating was limited and ADA seating was available, and both the 2023 and 2024 previews told guests to bring blankets or lawn chairs. Whether the same arrangement applies this year hasn't been announced.
- Weather. None of the coverage reviewed for this post says what happens to the alignment on a cloudy morning, or whether a backup presentation is planned.
- Other days. FOX 13's 2015 report described the effect as a Veterans Day event. The sources reviewed don't say whether light reaches the Seal at other times on the days around November 11.
The address for the ceremony is 41703 N. Gavilan Peak Pkwy, at Anthem Community Park. The Council's Anthem Veterans Memorial page handles paver purchases and donations to the Circle of Honor, and it is the place to watch for any updated logistics before the 11th.
Living near a landmark built to a 100-year tolerance is one of the quieter rewards of an Anthem address, and our team follows these local details closely. If you're thinking about what your home in Anthem or anywhere in the North Valley is worth, Dream Living AZ is glad to help. Request a private consultation with Jennifer Patnode, and we'll talk it through with the same care.
