The Alabama Poppy Project will mark a major milestone in 2026, relocating its annual Memorial Day exhibition to the USS ALABAMA Battleship Memorial Park, where the growing tribute to deceased service members and veterans will be on display May 22 through May 26.

Founded on Memorial Day 2020 by Prattville artist Julianne Hansen, the project began with 1,000 handmade stoneware poppies, a news release said. Each year, the installation expands to reflect the calendar year, symbolizing the ongoing legacy of sacrifice. The 2026 display will feature 2,026 red stoneware poppies mounted on steel rods, forming a field designed to move with the wind. Each poppy will be adorned with a white silk ribbon bearing the name of a deceased service member.

“The move to the USS ALABAMA marks a significant new chapter for the project,” Julianne Hansen, founder of the Alabama Poppy Project, said in the release. “While our roots are in Prattville, the Battleship Memorial Park provides a solemn, organic environment that perfectly aligns with our mission: to ensure that the message of service and sacrifice is never forgotten. Here, the poppies will stand in the shadow of a monument that breathes the very history we seek to honor.”

Organizers said in the release that the move from Prattville was prompted by ongoing construction and evolving municipal policies, which led them to seek a larger venue capable of accommodating the project’s steady growth while preserving its reflective atmosphere. The USS ALABAMA Battleship Memorial Park, a nationally recognized destination for veterans and families, offers an outdoor setting where the installation can be experienced as intended.

While Memorial Day traditionally honors those killed in action, the Alabama Poppy Project extends recognition to all deceased veterans, regardless of whether they died in combat or later in life. Each poppy in the field represents an individual who served.

Visitors will have the opportunity to sponsor a poppy in honor of a loved one. Sponsors receive a handmade stoneware poppy, available in two sizes, to keep as a permanent tribute. Each sponsorship also includes a white dedication ribbon inscribed with the veteran’s name, which participants tie to a poppy stem in the display, ensuring their loved one is publicly honored throughout the holiday weekend.

After the exhibition concludes, organizers will collect the ribbons and mail them back to sponsors as keepsakes. The project also maintains an online registry of honorees, where participants may include a photograph and brief biography to further preserve each individual’s story.

Sponsorships for the 2026 installation are expected to open soon. Additional details about participation, volunteering and sponsorship opportunities are available at www.alabamapoppyproject.com.