By Rebecca Chaisson
Managing Editor
During the annual Memorial Day Ceremony held in Eunice Monday, Louisiana State Commander for the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Department Alfred Leger said there are heroes amongst us; we just don’t always know when we are standing next to them.
“A lot of times, a lot of people have no clue that there’s a hero living right next door to you,” he said. Then he shared a story from his job, where he comes across such heroes daily.
“I had an elderly gentleman come to my office in Lafayette and asked if I could help get into the VA medical,” Leger explained.
When he asked to see the veteran’s discharge papers, he was surprised to see “Purple Heart, pending, 50 years, and Bronze Star, pending, 50 years.”
“He said, ‘Look, don’t make a big deal out of my discharge. All I want to do is get into VA medical,’” Leger explained to Monday’s crowd.
Leger further explained that the veteran could be denied based on his pending status, so the army did some research into his service record.
“He wasn’t entitled to a Purple Heart,” Leger said of the findings. “He was entitled to three Purple Hearts. He was not entitled to a Bronze Star. He was entitled to three Bronze Stars, and they threw a Silver Star in on top of it. Just know that we have heroes, true heroes, living amongst us, and we have no clue who they are. Could be one of the people you’re standing besides … You just never know what they did in service that earned them that distinction.”
While veterans are recognized every year on Veterans Day, Memorial Day is meant to honor those who never made it home. But it the heroes still living often tasked with keeping the memory of those lost alive.
Veterans from VFW Post 8971, American Legion Post 129, DAV Veterans, and the Vietnam Association out of Kinder, were all in attendance to do just that, speaking of the ultimate sacrifice made by their comrades and remembering them for their service.
VFW Commander Bob Witkovski gave the opening and closing remarks during the ceremony, standing in front of the memorial statue where fellow servicemen’s names are carved into stone.
The general consensus of all the event’s veteran speakers was that Memorial Day is not about the hamburgers, hot dogs and big sales.
“It’s about taking care of our deceased veterans,” Leger added. “Now is the time we honor and praise what they have done for all of America.”
American Legion Veteran David Crader said that surviving veterans “know the weight of the uniform and remember the faces of those who never came home. They were sons, daughters, spouses, friends who answered the call of duty, trading their future for our present, so that we may live in a nation of liberty.
Crader said that remembrance alone is not enough.
“We must honor their sacrifice through our actions,” Crader said. “How we live by caring for or loving our living veterans, and by teaching the next generation the price of the flag we fly. To my fellow veterans, on this day our minds naturally drift back to those we’ve served alongside, we think of our friends whose laughter we miss, the sacrifices they made, and the future they never got to live. You know better than anyone that Memorial Day is not a day of happy greetings. It is a day to shoulder the burden of our memories. Thank you for your service, your continued brotherhood, and for never forgetting those who gave everything.”
Crader asked those in attendance to try and turn their grief into gratitude, “as we enjoy the freedoms they fought to protect. May their valor inspire our community, our commitment to our community, ourselves, and our country. God bless everyone for coming. God bless our Gold Star families, and God bless the United States of America.”
After speeches from several veterans, all of the names on the Memorial monument were read out loud to those in attendance, followed by the Vietnam Veterans of America Kinder Chapter performance of the 21 Gun Salute and Taps.
City Marshal Terry Darbonne thanked all those in attendance Monday, for taking the time out of their schedules to show respect for the fallen and their families.
“Thank you for serving our country,” he said, “and for families that are here that have lost loved ones, you’re not alone. We stand with you. God bless America.”