DAV pays respect to local heroes in memorial service
Published 12:00 am Thursday, May 27, 2004
Occasional rain drops falling from the heavens did very little to hide the veterans' falling tears.
"Taps" echoed across the Lawrence County Courthouse lawn Wednesday as a crowd of more than a dozen came to support the Disabled American Veterans Chapter 51 memorial service honoring the locals who paid the ultimate price in Vietnam.
In front of what he called the best crowd in five years, DAV commander Stephen Saunders fought back the tears and choked out a story that highlighted the theme - that no one is ''Just Another Name on the Wall."
"This is family. Our family has sacrificed their lives," Saunders said as he looked at the memorial that honors 23 soldiers from Lawrence County. "When we are in the service, we call each other brother. It is the same thing now.
"These people are legends. They are heroes."
The memorial was erected by the American Legion Post 433 in the 1970s. Sixteen of the soldiers were killed in Vietnam and seven more died while in service during that era.
A large wreath of red, white and blue flowers was placed on the memorial and surrounded with American, Prisoner of War and Missing in Action flags.
Charles Meadows, vice commander of the Order of the Purple Hearts Chapter 765, called the ceremony fitting and deserving.
"Nothing is more important. We have to recognize these men. There could pick no better theme," Meadows said. "We can't ever forget a single veteran. I just hope and pray we don't have any more names to add to the memorial or the wall."
The top name on the list, Sgt. Donald Russell Long of Blackfork, is an example of one of the countless stories that the memorial holds.
Long gave his life to save the lives of eight of his men who were inside an armored personnel carrier when a North Vietnamese soldier threw a grenade in their midst. In a split second, Sgt. Long shouted the warning, knocked one man out of the way and then he dove onto the grenade, shielding his men from its deadly blast, Saunders said.
A fellow soldier told Saunders that Long was "one of the finest soldiers he had ever known." Fittingly, Long was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor after his death.
"If you want a true example of leadership, Don Long is it. This man didn't have to dive on that grenade. He did not have to stand in the open and return enemy fire," Saunders said. "He was not only fighting for his life. He was fighting for the lives of his men."
Jim Frazer let the message go straight to his heart, while his wife Beatrice sobbed quietly as the emotion overtook her. The couple drove 900 miles from Connecticut for Monday's annual Ironton-Lawrence County Memorial Day Parade.
"All these memorials are great but there should be more notoriety for these people," he said.
For Saunders and his fellow veterans, each and every one of the soldiers memorialized are true American heroes and Wednesday's ceremony helped make sure they will never be forgotten.