21 May Roswell Remembers
Marine Salute
My hometown of Roswell, Georgia hosts the largest Memorial Day Celebration in the state. A joint effort between the City of Roswell and the Roswell Rotary Club, this is a nonpolitical, noncommercial event. It is always inspiring and a wonderful way to honor our veterans.
Weather permitting (and we will be there even if it rains!) thousands of people will come to listen to our speakers, visit the exhibits and shake hands with the veterans who attend, many in uniform. One of my favorite parts of the program is when anyone from the audience can walk up and speak into the microphone “from the heart.” One year we were all in tears as a survivor from the Bataan Death March told his story. Last year, one of the veterans who flew to Washington DC on our Honor Flight spoke of her experience.
Faces of War Memorial
The Atlanta Wind Symphony will play the official song from each branch of service as the veterans stand and proudly give their salute. Grandfathers will take their little ones to the Faces of War Memorial and explain what it means and why we must remember.
The featured speaker this year is Colonel Benjamin H. Purcell. Colonel Purcell was serving in Vietnam when the helicopter on which he was a passenger was shot down in February 1968. He spent more than five years as a prisoner of war, 58 months of that time in solitary confinement. Longer in solitary than any other American POW, Colonel Purcell was the highest ranking Army officer returnee from the Vietnam conflict and was released on March 27, 1973. It will be an honor to hear him speak on Monday.
For more information, go to the Roswell Remembers website where you can see pictures of previous years, read Colonel Purcell’s biography, and get directions on how to find us on Monday. Come see what Memorial Day is all about!
Remember, freedom is not free. Our veterans have paid dearly for it.
Barbara Ann
Posted at 04:36h, 22 MayWhat a beautiful tribute to those who have served and protected us!