POOLER, Ga. – Soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division supported the community and the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force Dec. 7 in a ceremony remembering the victims of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
The Marne Division provided a bugler from the 3rd ID Band to played taps and a firing party from the 3rd Combat Aviation Brigade to provide a 21-gun salute.
The noncommissioned officer in charge of the firing party, Sgt. 1st Class Christian Berton, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd CAB, said it is an honor to serve the many military veterans and supporters who were in attendance.
“It’s important to remember our history,” Berton said. “A lot of the youth in America today don’t really know what this day is about. I’m glad they can come to an awesome museum like this one and learn about the sacrifices made by the World War II generation.”
The day’s history was remembered by two survivors who were both very young at the time of the attack and also by guest speaker Navy Rear Adm. Charles A. Richard, commander, Submarine Group 10. Richard quoted Mark Twain during his address.
“Mark Twain said that history may not repeat itself, but it rhymes. And I submit to you that it might be rhyming right now,” Richard said referring to the current state of foreign affairs.
One World War II veteran in attendance was Paul Grassey. A B-24 Liberator pilot with the Eighth Air Force, Grassey stays very involved with the museum. He talked about how the attack on Pearl Harbor changed his life.
“I was listening to the radio of a ‘39 Chevy with my brother and found out that the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor. Our lives would never be the same,” Grassey said. “My brother was an ensign in the Navy three months later and I was trying to convince my father to let me join the Army Air Corps.”
Grassey convinced his father and flew 13 missions over Germany during the war. He talks with visitors to the museum and reminds them not to forget the past.
“We need to not forget this stuff,” Grassey said. “We need to smarten up, or we’ll be in big trouble all over again.”
Date Taken: | 12.07.2014 |
Date Posted: | 12.15.2014 09:26 |
Story ID: | 150297 |
Location: | SAVANNAH, GA, US |
Web Views: | 22 |
Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Marne Soldiers honor Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, by SGT William Begley, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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