Vets pay tribute

Early on a cold Saturday morning, local veterans turned out to honor those who could not be there.

Starting out in front of the Lenoir County Courthouse, they paid tribute to those from Lenoir County who fought and died in World War I and World War II, planting crosses adorned with artificial poppy flowers, and laying a wreath.

From there, they moved on to the Korean and Vietnam war memorial at the Gov. Richard Caswell Memorial on Vernon Avenue, raising the American flag over the memorial — first to the top of the pole, then down to half-mast.

“The reason is, on Memorial Day, we also honor the living, and those who passed since the wars — those whose names are not on the monument,” said Herman McLawhorn, curator of the Walk of Honor at Pearson Park.

McLawhorn said the memorial could be moving soon.

“This may be, if we clear one more hurdle, this will be the last year that we’ll come out here to do this,” McLawhorn said. “The reason I say that is because, as soon as we get permission from the state, we’re going to make an attempt to move this memorial down to the Walk of Honor.”

Most of the people who attended the ceremonies served in Korea or Vietnam or both, or during those eras.

“Vietnam was crazy,” said Ned Britt, who served in the Marines and the Air Force. “You know, the United States, a lot of people didn’t want the war. Didn’t want to support it, didn’t understand it. There was a lot of politics in it.”

Donna Ramsey, the incoming commander of the local American Legion post, said Memorial Day was a time to reflect.

“When we were downtown, I was thinking about it, and it becomes really personal, sometimes, if you think about it,” Ramsey said. “So it’s a good time to stop and think and be appreciative.”

Wes Wolfe can be reached at 252-559-1075 or wes.wolfe@kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter @WolfeReports.