Leaders take moment to honor vets
Published 8:13 pm Monday, May 30, 2011
Brenda McCary, social worker with the Selma VA Clinic, and Andrea Cross attended the Memorial Day Moment of Silence event Monday at Selma City Hall. -- Tim Reeves
The silence at Selma City Hall said it all Monday as a small crowd of city and county officials, veterans and supporters gathered to honor the 131 area soldiers who gave their lives defending freedom.
The event, Selma Mayor George Evans said, keeps their memory fresh in everyone’s mind.
“It’s important that we have things like this so that we never forget,” he said. “We enjoy the things that we can enjoy because of the 131 veterans who went across the ocean and left their homeland to see that we may have safety, security and freedom. That’s why we never want to forget them.”
Their ultimate sacrifice, along with the efforts of those who returned allow Americans to maintain the quality of life we have today, Evans said.
“They gave up their lives and we are still living as a result of that,” he said. “There are also those who returned home because they also went and fought the battles. God blessed them to be able to come back home and tell the stories of what happened at that time.”
For Valley Grande Mayor and Vietnam veteran Tom Lee, the event is also an important way to supplement the education of young people.
“There’s a whole generation of young people growing up who have had a casual mention of the Korean War and Vietnam,” he said. “But they really don’t know about them. There is so much history as it continues to be made, but there is not enough time and room in education to be able to go into that.”
It is also a reminder that Memorial Day is more than a vacation from work, he added.
“Without these types of activities, the days could just get to a point where it is a Monday off and a day to grill out,” he said. “It’s great that we have the time off, but we need to remember why.”
Evans said the city would continue to honor the memories of those who gave their lives every chance they get.
“It’s something that will never go away,” he said.
