A Special Supplement to Honor Our Local Veterans
HONORING ALL WHO SERVED November 2018
The Daily Reflector and The Rocky Mount Telegram have joined together this year to celebrate local veterans from Pitt, Nash and Edgecombe counties in this combined section. We hope you will enjoy the stories and photos that have been collected, honoring heroes from all across eastern North Carolina.
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THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
Honoring Our Veterans
Remember Armistice Day BY MATTHEW DAVENPORT It was still dark on the morning of November 11, 1918 when 22-year-old Lieutenant Cedric Harris awoke shivering in a shell crater in a muddy field near the northern French village of Moranville. Cold and rain cut through a low fog as Harris gathered the men of his platoon for a dawn attack which would take them through the shelled-out village, across a frigid stream, and to the German-held town of Grimacourt. Edward “Cedric” Harris was the eldest of five sons to a farming family from Wendell, North Carolina. When America entered the World War the previous year, Cedric was a senior at Trinity College (present-day Duke University). He graduated, volunteered for Army service, trained at Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, was commissioned a lieutenant and shipped to France with the 81st “Wildcat” Division. Like the rest of the 28,000 soldiers of the division—many of them draftees from North Carolina—Harris and his platoon had only been in France for three months and had served in just one quiet front-line sector. But on November 8, they had been marched to the active front lines east of Verdun, and November 11 marked their third straight day on the attack. Earlier that morning, 136 miles away in a railway car in Compiegne, a delegation representing Germany signed the Armistice that would end the war, effective at 11:00 a.m. Telegrams were dispatched to Allied unit commanders that they were to “not pass the line reached at that date and at that hour.” Some commanders who received word of the coming Armistice ordered their troops to halt and cancelled planned offensives, but many—including the commander of the 81st Division—ordered attacks to proceed as planned but to halt at 11:00 a.m. sharp. So later that morning at 10:30,
under a gray sky and light drizzle, Lieutenant Harris led his platoon into the open field toward the German lines at Grimacourt where he and his men came under fire from three German machine guns. Harris grabbed one of his platoon’s machine guns, mounted it on a tripod and personally began returning fire. A few of his men rushed to assist him at the gun, but after he was shot by enemy fire, he ordered them to take cover and leave him, where he continued firing until he fell unconscious from blood loss just yards from the German barbed wire. At 11:00 a.m, the fighting stopped. Lieutenant Harris’s men carried him to a field hospital where he died later that afternoon. He was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and, from a grateful France, the Croix de Guerre with Palm. Harris was one of 36 North Carolinians killed in the final half hour of the war, and one of 2,738 Americans killed on that final morning, more than America suffered on D-Day. In a single moment, 1,560 uninterrupted days of shell blasts and rifle cracks and machine-gun racket and thumps of bullets hitting flesh and hiss of mustard gas and gasps and screams and cries finally ended, but there was no widespread celebration in the trenches. Along most of the front there was just a solemn silence which men described as “deafening,” “dreamlike,” and “other-worldly.” As one author wrote of their testimony: “They have all told me in one way or another that the sudden silence was the Voice of God.” No veterans of the Great War survive, so we no longer have among us men who can remember when a single moment of silence spoke so clearly to mankind. For those who survived the war but lived their remaining days with physical and mental wounds that would never heal, and for the widows and
parents and siblings and children who often had no remains to bury, the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month would remain forever sacred. But here in America, where November 11th has transformed into an all-encompassing holiday set aside to honor all those who served, the solemnity of Armistice Day died with the generation that lived it. On this hundredth anniversary of that day, it is fitting to remember what it signified to the generations that lived the war’s horrors, and what it meant forever to Wesley and Meta Earl Harris of Wendell, who had to bury their eldest son, the costliest of all sacrifices made on a cold, damp day in a foreign field just minutes before the silence of peace finally came. Happy Veterans Day. But on this year especially, remember Armistice Day.
A North Carolina soldier of the 81st Division, photographed after the Armistice, France 1919.
Matthew Davenport is a local attorney, Army veteran, and member of Greenville’s American Legion Post 39. His book, First Over There: The Attack On Cantigny, America’s First Battle of World War I was published by Macmillan in 2015.
Soldiers of the 81st “Wildcat” Division training in Camp Jackson, SC, 1918
Edward C. Harris while a student at Trinity College (present-day Duke University) 1917
Edward C. Harris during training at Ft. Oglethorpe, GA, 1917
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DENNIS FIGGS, U.S. AIR FORCE San Antonio,Texas wasn’t just going to be their first assignment, it was would be their first trip far from Nearly 30 years have passed since Dennis Figgs home. They flew to San Sr. served in the U.S. Antonio and arrived by Air Force. Occasionally, nightfall. After the bus he pulls from the closet transporting them to the the dark, blue, military base eventually parked, uniform that links him to the doors opened and a a career he hadn’t anticiman they came to learn pated. would be their training “When I enlisted, I intended to serve four years instructor stepped aboard. The man startled them as but I put in 20 years of he began shouting instrucdedicated service,� Figgs said. “I couldn’t have done tions, ordering them to get off the bus and fall in line. that without the help of “We looked at each my wife, Sharon. She put other and thought ‘Who her career on hold each is this guy? Why is he time we had to move screaming? We don’t even because I received a new know him,� Figgs said. assignment. Yes, when I look at that uniform now, “He got started that night and it went on for the next I see it (the career) all in eight weeks. I didn’t like phases.� all the cursing and shoutLike many veterans, Figgs recalls the era when ing during basic training but that was part of it.� he enlisted. The Vietnam When Figgs finally War was underway. He was aware that thousands made it to bed that night, he had only two thoughts: of Southern men his age What have I gotten myself were being drafted to into? And what if I just serve. made the biggest mistake Figgs graduated from of my life? high school in 1967 and Figgs recalls the story enrolled at College of The Albemarle. He realized the today as a way of reminddraft was likely to change ing others that while life his status from civilian to can change abruptly, so can we. enlistee sometime soon. Figgs settled into To simplify things, he and military life, discovering two friends decided to join the Air Force in 1969. basic training was simply a way of determining who Figgs’ older brother could follow commands, had served in the U.S. get along with peers on a Army so he decided to team and adjust to militake another route. Figgs tary leadership. He credits also suspected the Air his parents with bringing Force would expand his him up to follow instrucemployment options betions, manage his time and yond what was available respect others. to him in the Elizabeth Over the next 19 years, City area. Figgs worked as a vehicle After completing the operator specialist responapplication packet at the sible for transporting local Air Force recruitmaintenance personnel er’s office, the three men and ground equipment at packed their bags. Lackairfields. He also worked land Air Force Base in BY KESHA WILLIAMS Correspondent
as a logistic specialist technician and then, later, as logistician in Dover, Delaware responsible for preparing military units for wartime deployments. He retired in 1989. “There was always some level of fear because you didn’t know what to expect when you arrived to work at another base,� Figgs recalled. “There’s a different weaponry system at every base. I had to made sure I understood the computer systems. Learning a new job bothered me more than moving to live in a different state or country.� Unlike many men in his age cohort, Figgs never saw combat. He had colleagues in both the Air Force and Army who did, however, and it was always disturbing, he said, to think about how the Vietnam War affected them and their families. Figgs said his Air Force assignments were challenging so he often spent hours studying, attending training schools and preparing to meet his superiors’ expectations. He developed good organizational skills that would serve him well over the course of his life. Even so, military life wasn’t easy. “Serving in the military was something I just wanted to do but it wasn’t always easy,� he said. “There were times I was discouraged from the moving and transferring. Even thought about getting out of the military. My wife and mother encouraged me to complete my career.� By the time he began working in logistics, Figgs had weekends off and could travel with his wife. His last tour of duty was
was the branch of the military that would provide him with both the skills and opportunities he’d need later in life.
in England. Today, he reflects on the German Neuschwanstein castle they visited in the early 1980s and the bus tours they completed to Austria, Switzerland and Italy. “I wanted to see other places. The way to do it was my military fulfillment,� he said. “I lived in Germany four years and we discovered we preferred German food while living there. My wife and I also had time to drive to Holland.� He credits his military service with providing a window to the world. He says the Air Force taught him a lot about how to work with different people and he can’t imagine any other line of work that would have exposed
a young black man in the 1970s to so many other cultures. “The Air Force taught us about race relations before we transferred to other countries,� Figgs said. “You learned things you don’t say that will hurt people. They prepared us before they moved us.� Of course, traveling to other countries also exposed him to the world’s harsh realities. He was saddened to see how few resources residents of less-privileged countries had. It made him wish other Americans could travel abroad and see the contributions American military personnel make around the world. “I came back more appreciative, able to love
people of all races. I had a better understanding of other people’s lifestyles, their living conditions,� Figgs said. Whenever he meets young people pondering military service. He’s ready to share lessons he’s learned -- not just about the military but about life. “You can’t quit because things are getting complicated. Work with it until you learn it,� he said. Figgs is proud of his service. He’s also heartened that others appreciate veterans’ service. “�I love our flag,� he said. “A lot of young men and women shed their blood for this country. It’s good to see so many veteran celebrations now.�
GEORGE LAWRENCE AND FRED MORROW, U.S. NAVY nine and a half years. Morrow joined the military on his 18th birthday and served for four and a EDENTON -- George half years. In January 1968, Lawrence and Fred Morhe was stationed on the row both served in the U.S. Navy around the same USS Forrestal, which was drydocked for repairs in time. But their time in the Portsmouth, Virginia. A fire military was different: ripped through the ship on Lawrence’s tours were in Asia and the Pacific Ocean, July 29, 1967, while it was engaged in combat operawhile Morrow was stations in the Gulf of Tonkin tioned in Europe and the during the Vietnam War. Mediterranean. The blaze broke out Both settled down in after an electrical anomaly New Jersey, had families caused a Zuni rocket on a and went to work for the U.S. Post Office. They vaca- F-4B Phantom jet to fire, tioned on the Outer Banks striking an external fuel together with their families tank of an A-4 Skyhawk. until eventually retiring and The flammable jet fuel spilled across the flight settling down in Edenton. deck, ignited and triggered They now live next door to each other and both are a chain-reaction of explosions that killed 134 sailors active in American Legion and injured 161. The late Post 40. Lawrence and Morrow U.S. Sen. John McCain was joined the Navy at 18. Law- among the survivors of the rence graduated from high fire. Morrow comes from a school at 17. In January 1969, after he turned 18, he long line of service members. His dad served during enlisted. Lawrence served World War II in the Philaboard the USS King, a ippines. His grandfather destroyer, and served two was in World War I and Western Pacific tours of was honored with both the about six to nine months each. During that time, the Silver and Bronze Stars. “Most of my family was King visited the Pacific Rim, Australia and the Gulf in the service,� he said. “It just felt like it was the right of Tonkin. He served for BY NICOLE LAYTON Chowan Herald
thing to do.� Lawrence, whose older brother enlisted in the Navy six months before he did, said being in the military helped him learn organizational skills and understand how chains of command work. “It shapes you to be more tolerant of things and to be able to think under pressure,� he said. Morrow said his Navy tours at times were stressful, but they also gave him a sense of accomplishment. “We were more like good-will ambassadors for the U.S.,� he said of his Navy tours in Europe. “The lifestyle is not fit for everyone. You have to want to serve and want to be a part of something.� Both said it was tough when they got out of the service. “We didn’t say we were a veteran,� Morrow recalled. Lawrence recalled marching in a parade and a 6-year-old coming up to him and calling him a “baby killer� because his parents had told him to. Lawrence said nowadays, most people in Chowan County support America’s
Remembering
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NICOLE BOWMAN-LAYTON/CHOWAN HERALD - Fred Morrow (left) and George Lawrence both served in the Edenton, they became active members of American Legion Post 40.
veterans. “There are a lot of people who appreciate veterans,� Morrow said. “There are a lot of people who feel like the United States doesn’t need to be the world’s policemen.� “People don’t understand how you defend yourself against a lone wolf,� Lawrence said. “You have to remain vigilant.� “When you wear your hat or something else indicating you’re a veteran, a lot of people thank you for your service,� Morrow said. “That didn’t happen when we came back home.� Both Morrow and Lawrence, who are in their 60s,
help organize activities that support other veterans. Once a month, they gather used clothes from the local clothes closet and other private donations and deliver them to the VA hospital in Hampton Roads. The American Legion Auxiliary that runs the hospital’s store distributes the clothing to homeless veterans and patients who need it upon release. Morrow and Lawrence also help their wives raise money for Wreaths Across America. On Dec. 15, the nonprofit will lay wreaths on 850 veterans’ graves in
Chowan County as part of a nationwide effort to honor all decreased veterans. The veterans also help organize an annual fishing event for 50 disabled veterans every April. Why do they help out? “It’s the right thing to do,� Morrow said. “No one left behind,� Lawrence and Morrow chimed in together. “We’re young enough to still do these things,� Morrow continued. “It’s hard to get young people involved in this. Young people have jobs, kids and other things to do. I didn’t start getting involved until I retired.�
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THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
THE DAILY REFLECTOR
GUY SIMMONS, U.S. NAVY
Simmons: Vietnam vets more appreciated now Retired Navy Capt. Guy Simmons is grateful that America eventually warmed to its veterans from the Vietnam War. He remembers when the reception was cold and even hostile. After serving on a ship in the South China Sea during the Vietnam War, Simmons confronted the hostility head-on on the campus of Columbia University in New York City. Simmons retired from the U.S. Navy as a captain in 1992 with six years of active duty and 21 years of reserve service. His civilian career was in corporate finance. He said he was fortunate to earn a Master of Business Administration from Columbia University while teaching ROTC at Columbia. The Columbia campus was the scene of numerous anti-war protests while Simmons was there from 1969-1971, and the ROTC office was firebombed shortly after he took the post. The fire was quickly discovered and extinguished, and no one was hurt in the incident, but Simmons said it could have been a tragedy since the office was located in a dormitory building. After the fire the ROTC was moved off-campus into an unmarked building. Simmons said the traditional requirement that the midshipmen wear their uniforms on certain days of the week also was relaxed during that time. “It was a challenge,” Simmons said of his time with the ROTC at Columbia. “We didn’t require the
midshipmen to wear their uniforms because we didn’t want them to be targets.” Simmons said in his work as an ROTC instructor he sought not only to impart knowledge but also to address morale and instill a positive view of the path they were pursuing. Morale was a challenge, he said, because “the pressure from fellow students and faculty was enormous.” But Simmons said he believes the ROTC succeeded in its mission even under those circumstances. “We commissioned some very fine officers,” he said. As for the hostility he encountered personally at Columbia, in addition to things whispered as he walked past “there were overt things from both students and faculty -- but nobody hit me,” Simmons said. “It was unpleasant but it was tolerable. I believed in what I was doing.” Simmons said he believed in America’s mission in the Vietnam War and thinks there was a lot of misunderstanding about the reason for the war. “I believed the people of South Vietnam would have been better off free than communist,” Simmons said. “They wanted the fundamental freedoms that they weren’t going to get under communism.” Simmons, 75, grew up in Hawthorne, N.J., planning to serve in the military. “The older I got, the more the Navy appealed to me,” he said. Simmons was an ROTC student at Co-
lumbia from 1961 to 1965 and remembers that when he started, there was not a lot being said or heard about Vietnam. By the time he graduated the war “was building up,” he said. Midway through his ROTC studies, South Vietnamese president President Diem was assassinated, and that created some awareness among ROTC students that Vietnam was a potential trouble spot moving forward, he said. “By my senior year in college, it was surely something that was on lots of minds,” he said. At the time he started college the tension between America and the Soviet Union and asasociated communist regimes was intense, and “there were all of these potential flashpoints -- one of them certainly which was Vietnam.” After graduating from ROTC at Columbia University in 1965, Simmons was stationed as an officer aboard the USS Sutter County, a World War II LST or tank landing ship that was being reactivated. After training in San Diego the ship headed toward Vietnam and on the way dropped off 115 Marines at an air station in Japan. During the war, the ship sometimes would see those same Marines in the port at Chu Lai, and the Marines would come aboard for a meal with the sailors. Although the LSTs sometimes came under direct fire, the more common danger came from mines that would be floated down the river or attached to a ship by underwater swim-
mers. “Mining was the single biggest threat,” Simmons said. “We were a target, but mostly for mining.” But the ships did sometimes face rocket fire, and the single incident that caused the largest loss of life to sailors in the Vietnam War was when another LST was hit by rocket fire on a river, Simmons said. The LST he served on had two close calls with mines, Simmons said. If a mine had exploded on the ship it could have been catastrophic, he said, since the vessel frequently was loaded with bombs, napalm and white phosphorous. “We were supporting the Navy swift boats and Coast Guard WPBs, who were interdicting the junks and various vessels that might have been suspicious,” Simmons said. Simmons said his ship offloaded supplies at beaches and river mouths off the South China Sea. “The risk to us was nothing like the risk to those on riverboats and those fighting all day, every day in country, or the pilots flying off carriers hitting targets in North Vietnam,” Simmons said. “On the scale of risk we were twos -- they were nines and 10s.” Simmons said swift boats were fast and well-armed, but not well-armored because that would have slowed them down. “And they were very, very good at what they did,” he said of the swift boats and their crews. In addition to the supply missions the LST Simmons served
“We have kind of benefited from that restored respect for veterans.” -Guy Simmons
aboard also was involved in one amphibious mission in which U.S. Marines and Korean Marines went ashore from the LST in landing vehicle tanks. Simmons said the ship was in and out of Vietnam from September 1966 through December 1967. “I got home in time for Christmas in ‘67,” Simmons said, recalling it was “a great Christmas” and “very memorable.” In early 1968 Simmons was stationed on a guided missile destroyer based out of Charleston, S.C. Unlike the World War II era LST he had served on in Vietnam, the guided missile destroyer was one of the Navy’s newer and more technologically advanced ships at that time, he said. Simmons moved to the Albemarle area in 2012, living first in Edenton and now in Hertford, and has been involved in a number of community organizations, including the Rocky Hock Lions Club, Chowan/ Perquimans Habitat for Humanity, various veterans groups, and the Ronaoke Chowan Community Health Center. Simmons said he saw and spoke with the late Sen. John McCain -- the Republican presidential nominee in 2008 who was a prisoner of war in North Vietnam for five years -- five times over the years, most recently in the spring of 2017. At that time, Simmons was in Washington, D.C., on behalf of the Roanoke Chowan Community Health Center and other community health centers. He ran into McCain in a tunnel on Capitol Hill.
“He and I stopped and shook hands and said ‘welcome home’ to each other, which is the greeting that is exchanged among Vietnam veterans -- because when we came home there weren’t a lot of people saying ‘welcome home,’” Simmons said. Simmons said he believes Vietnam veterans are being treated much better today, and he attributes that in part to the way society has improved its response to veterans returning from the first Gulf War, Iraq and Afghanistan. “We have kind of benefited from that restored respect for veterans,” Simmons said. But it was a long time coming. “For a lot of us, it was 15 years before we even started identifying in public as Vietnam veterans,” Simmons said, noting the “Vietnam Veteran” caps that are often seen now were rarely worn in the 1970s and 1980s. Simmons said he feels extremely fortunate to have come through the war and gone on to a successful civilian and military career and in general a very good life. Many were not so fortunate, though, according to Simmons. “There are so many people who have, through no fault of their own, just lived these lives of total misery, and Vietnam was the genesis of it,” Simmons said. Simmons said keeping that in mind motivates his support for veterans organizations such as Disabled American Veterans, the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars.
THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
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CARROLL BUNDY, NC ARMY NATIONAL GUARD BY ANNA GOODWIN MCCARTHY ity of his time in the Guard at the armorStaff Writer ies in Elizabeth City, Edenton and Ahoskie. Faith and a desire Bundy also attended to serve his country training sessions in have always been big motivators for Carroll Italy which gave him the opportunity to Bundy. visit Rome and SwitHe recalls being zerland. 6 years old when he “It gave me the first “felt the Holy Spirit” while attending opportunity to grow, to do a lot of things I a church revival. would never be able to “I remember that do,” Bundy said. clearly,” says Bundy. Because National It’s why he would go on to become a lay Guard units were also deployed to Afghanspeaker at his church istan and Iraq fol15 years ago, and lowing the Sept. 11, then a pastor in 2014. 2001 attacks, Bundy He’s been the pastor also spent nearly at New Hope United nine months in Iraq. Methodist Church In 2004, he served in since January and says he enjoys the op- Iraq from mid March to December as an portunity to minister infantry squad leader to others. with Alpha Company “It is a real honor of the 120th Infantry/ to do something for a Mechanized unit of family,” Bundy said. North Carolina’s 30th His desire to serve Brigade Combat Team. his country manifest“We were an infaned itself in his decitry unit,” said Bundy. sion to join the North Carolina Army Nation- “We were doing security work, guarding al Guard. He would checkpoints. We did serve more than two a little bit of everydecades before retirthing.” ing in 2007 as a serBundy said he’s “exgeant first class. Bundy was the first tremely proud” of his military service. “In in his immediate famsome small way I did ily to join any branch my part,” he said. of the military. He says his other “I wanted to serve,” big motivator -- faith he said. -- helped during his Bundy said he deployment in Iraq. spent the vast major-
“Faith is what got me through,” said Bundy. “You have a lot of time to think.” Besides serving his country in Iraq, Bundy also served his neighbors following natural disasters like hurricanes. “I’ve pulled a couple of hurricane duties,” he said. Bundy said his Guard unit worked on the Outer Banks, helping clean roads, yards and schools. In Morehead City, the unit conducted night patrols. Bundy, who is a member of the U.S. Army Reserves, Retired Reserve Component, said he “made a lot of friends” during his years of Guard service. He now lives in Perquimans County with his wife, Carla Thornton Bundy. He works as the manufacturing manager at Albemarle Boats in Edenton, where he has been employed for 25 years. A member of American Legion Post 126, he was the speaker at the Memorial Day ceremony in Perquimans last year. He’s looking forward, he said, to attending this year’s Veterans Day ceremony in Hertford.
class, served a nine-month deployment in Iraq as an infantry squad leader with Alpha Company of the 120th Infantry/Mechanized unit of North Carolina’s 30th Brigade Combat Team.
BJ EMERSON, U.S. NAVY Navy: It’s not just a job, it’s an adventure. That was the U.S. Naval Academy’s recruiting slogan in 1987, and for Greenville business owner BJ Emerson, it worked wonders. He wanted an adventure – and after his high school graduation, the adventure the Naval Academy was promising seemed like a good fit. “That was the campaign. They give you a hat that says ‘Navy: It’s An Adventure.’ Also, Top Gun had just come out, and Tom Cruise was in the Navy,” Emerson said. “I didn’t really have the money for college and that made sense.” Emerson served in the U.S. Navy for seven years during the first Gulf War, Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert
Storm working with electronics and technology – more specifically, missile guided radars. “I spent lots of time out at sea and in the Mediterranean and Somalia,” he said. He entered the Navy a month after his high school graduation in 1987. He said while it was obviously difficult to leave behind relationships, he wouldn’t trade his experiences. “I got to travel around the world, see different things. I highly recommend it to anyone,” he said. Emerson, who has owned a digital marketing and advertising company in Greenville for six years, said the things he learned serving were invaluable. He never ended up going to college, but the things he learned
in the Navy served him well. “Attention to detail was something that they teach you that certainly served me well through my life. The foundation of what I learned with technology has also served me well, and I think the discipline that you learn... people don’t get that naturally. It just doesn’t come naturally,” he said. Emerson said Veteran’s Day is an important time to acknowledge and bring awareness to the brave men and women who are serving our country, and maybe it will even inspire someone else to look into it themselves. “I had a high schooler ask me what 9-11 was,” he said. “Let’s drive some awareness to what’s going on.”
Honoring and Acknowledging the Service of Men and Women who have Served in our Military. Our Veterans from left to right: Rob Doherty - Commander (O-5) U.S. Public Health Service (Ret.), Kim Coy - Third Class Petty Officer, US Coast Guard, Lori Elwell - Airman First Class, US Air Force, Jeremy Brough - Specialist Military Police, US Army
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THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
THE DAILY REFLECTOR
THANK YOU!
THE DAILY REFLECTOR WOULD LIKE TO THANK OUR LOCAL VETERANS AND THOSE WHO SUBMITTED PHOTOS.
BAKER James
BANKARD Barry V.
BANKARD Harry V.
BASS Robert W., Sr.
BENNETT Karna
BAKER Bob
BOTTOMS D.
BRINKLEY William Benjamin
BROWN Lisa
BUCK Charles
BURGESS Cain D., Sr.
CHAMBERS Lloyd
CHAPMAN James Allen, Jr.
COFFIELD James
COX Leslie R.
COX Samuel Hubert, Jr.
DAVENPORT J. Paul, III
DUNCAN Gregory
EVERETT Jarvis Ray
FIRKUS Raymond
FROLEICH Thomas Martin
GASKINS Greg
GRIFFIN Alvin
HAMMEREN Ronald
HEATH Bobby Odell, Jr.
HEATH Bobby Odell, Sr.
HENDERSON Calvin
HILLIARD Fred D.
HOWARD Waverly G.
JARMAN Major L
JONES Linwood
JESSEE Thomas J., Sr.
KOONCE Matthew
LACOUR Edward
LANGLEY Wilton
MAJORS Charles
US Army Staff Sergeant 22 years
US Army First Sergeant
US Army Spec 4
US Navy/US Air Force Chief Master Sargent 1946-1968
U.S. Army E-4 1989 – 1993
US Army SFC. E7 22 years
USAF Captain 1970 – 1974
U.S. Army Staff Sergeant 4 years
US Navy Chief Petty Officer 1958-1978
Army SP/5 46th Engineer Battalion 1968-1970
U.S. Army E-4 1954 – 1957
Army Specialist E3 4 years
US Air Force Colonel 1943 – 1970
US Navy E5 11 years
U.S.Air Force Master Sergeant 20 years
US Navy E6, Corpsman
USAF Airman 2nd Class 6 years
US Army Sgt E-5 1969-1972
US Army PFC 2 years
USAF MSgt 1953 - 1973
United States Air Force Airmen First Class 1951-1955
US Army Specialist (P) Military Police
US Army Staff Sgt 21 years
US Navy
US Army Specialist E-4 4 years
US Army PFC
US Air Force Lt. Col. 1959-1981
Army 9th Infantry Division 1968-1969
United States Army Staff Sergeant (E6) 25 years
US Army Corporal
US Army SFC 13 Years
US Army Corporal
US Navy Captain 1970 - 2005
Army, 221st Signal Corps-Pictoral SFC., Retired
USMC Cpl
US Army AF Staff Sgt. 1942 – 1945
THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
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THE DAILY REFLECTOR
MERCER Henry Nathaniel
MOORE Bryant
MOORE Charlie, Jr.
NEWTON Glenn A.
NEWTON W. R.
PENN Sandra Martin
PUGH Willie E
POWELL Mari
POWELL Mary W
POWELL Raymond
POWELL Robert E
POWELL Trevor
POWELL Douglas E
RAMEY Robert “ Bob “ L.
REAVES Kelvin
REAVES Ricky D
RODGERS Frederick
ROGERS John M. (Johnny)
ROSE James
ROUSE Edward
SALISBURY Walter
SANDERS Coy
SATCHELL Richard
SCHWARTZ Charles F
SHAE Elizabeth
SHERWOOD Daniel Lowell
STANDFORD Allen
THOMPSON Stevan
TRIPP Katherine
TURNER Curtis
VINES Harold
WARREN Wilmer
WATERS SJ
WHICHARD J. Edward
WHICHARD John S.
WHITEHURST Judy
WHITEHURST Marshal Dixon
WILKINS Belinda
WILKINS William
WYRICK D.R. (Bobby)
US Army Spec. 4
US Navy Petty Officer Third Class
USAF MSgt
US Army 1st Lt.
USMC E3/LCpl 4 years
US Army E4
C.S.A., 3rd Cavalry Sergeant 4 years (1861-1865)
US Army Srgt 22 years
USAF Airman 1st Class
Army Air Corp CPL 1943-1945
USMC Corporal
US Navy Commander 27 years
US Army Specialist E-5 3 years
US Army Reserves SGT 14 years
U.S. Navy E-3 4 Years
US Air Force Airman 1st Class
US Army E6 10 years
Army Reserve Specialist E4
US Army Sergeant First Class 1951-1971
U. S. Army PFC
US Army Reserves CW4 34 years
US NAVY Seaman First Class (SFC) 2 years
US Air Force CWO-4
US Army (USAR) SSgt 20 years
US Army Sergeant First Class 20 years
US Army COL 1986-2012
USCG Retired Lieutenant 1967 – 1996
U.S.M.C. L/CPL 1963 - 1968
NC Army National Guard Sergeant 1966-1972
US Air Force TSgt
US Army SP4
United States Army Corporal
982nd Combat Camera, Army Reserves Ssgt.
US Army 1st Lt. 1951-1953
US Army Nurse
US Navy Seaman
U.S. Army Captain 1966 – 1970
Army Signal Corps 1st Lieutenant 1957-1965
US Marines E1
US Army (USAR) Sgt. 1st Class 30 years
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THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
THE DAILY REFLECTOR
THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
B1
Honoring Our Veterans Janice Eleanor Beavon Gravely
SARAH LOUYA/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM - Janice Gravely sits for a portrait Friday at her home in Rocky Mount.
vice president and they bumped me up because the senior class presJanice Eleanor Beavon ident was drafted,” Gravely said. Gravely, 97, served in During her senior the Navy Women’s Reyear, the college held an serve, or WAVES, from aerology school on cam1943-46 during World pus and Gravely first enWar II. countered other women Gravely was — and still is— an unusual vet- serving as WAVES. “I was graduating eran and unusual womwith a degree in teacher an. She graduated from the University of Califor- education — but with the war on, I decided I nia-Los Angeles with a teaching degree in 1943. didn’t want to go into the classroom: I wanted Even on campus, she to join the war effort,” was making waves as Gravely said. “A lot of she served as the presimale students were dent of the senior class drafted at that time at the famed university at a time when that was and I felt if the country could use me, I would a rare accomplishment be there. And my counfor a woman. try did want me.” However, World War So Gravely’s advenII impacted that as it did so many in her early ture began. Because she had a bachelor’s degree, adult life. she was sent to Welles“I was elected as BY AMELIA HARPER Staff Writer
ley College for officer training. “Calvin Coolidge had lived in Wellesley, Mass., and his widow still lived there at that time,” Gravely said. “Five of us women in officer’s training had composed a patriotic song and she heard about it and invited us all to tea. It was really interesting, because Coolidge was a very frugal man, so the house was very simple and very lovely.” When it came time for her assignment, Gravely asked to be assigned to either coast. “I had never seen the Atlantic, but I wanted to see it. However, I was assigned to Kansas,” Gravely said with a laugh. “I had equal access to both oceans.” The base where she
was assigned was a Naval aviation primary training station. The first person she met at the station was Ed Gravely, a pilot who trained other pilots on the base. He eventually became her husband and the father of her four children. Gravely’s book, “Won’t Somebody Help Me!” recounts some of her experiences in the service and as a wife of a pilot. Gravely served as the Woman’s Reserve Officer, which placed her in charge of the roughly 40 WAVES at the base. As an officer, Gravely’s was also the Assistant Permanent Officer of the Day. As such, she had to do her rotation as the officer of the day on the base, a post that placed her in charge of the
base at times. Everyone on the base, she said, had to salute the officer of the day — even the men. As a symbol of her authority, she had to carry a gun. “It was a big job, but most of the time I did not have to worry about it because the officer of the day was there. I primarily inspected the station,” Gravely said. However, Gravely later learned that she was the only WAVE in the nation to have this authority. For the most part, events at the base ran smoothly. But once when she was in charge, a guard shack on the base caught fire near a row of fuel-filled planes. “Praise God, the chief petty officer came,” Gravely said. “I was only
22 and had no clue what to do. He would give me the orders and I would holler the orders to the men.” Though she was an officer, Gravely said she has a real respect for enlisted men. “The enlisted men really run the service. And if you reached the position of a chief petty officer, you really knew what you were doing,” Gravely said. Gravely said her time in the military taught her to respect authority and to respect the sacrifices of the men who suffered and died in that war. “Because we women did the desk duty, we were able to release men to go overseas to die. I still choke up about it,” Gravely said. “It was a long and terrible war.”
compensation from their time spent serving in the armed forces. Hill goes to things like For the past several City Council meetings years, a disabled veteran advocating for the commuhas used his own experience to help put himself in nity to support and help local veterans, pushing to a position to help fellow get more drivers to take veterans receive their benefits and compensation veterans to their medical appointments at the they deserved from their VA hospital and getting time serving and protectveterans more means of ing the country. New York native Martin transportation as well. “If they can’t get to Hill, 55, is the commander their medical appointof the Disabled American ments, then they lose Veterans Chapter 55 in their compensation,” Hill Rocky Mount. Hill also serves as the veterans ser- said. “It’s so important to help veterans and spouses vice officer of the Amerof veterans get what they ican Legion Post 293 in deserve from the governNashville. For more than ment.” 12 years, Hill has assisted Even though what hundreds of veterans to Hill does is a volunteer receive their benefits and
position, it’s something he feels he was destined to do following what occurred to him during his time in the military. Hill spent three years from 1981 to 1984 serving in the Army. During his time in the Army, Hill served under the command of Ray Odierno, a retired four-star general, who also served as the 38th Chief of Staff of the Army. Hill had aspirations of being in the Army longer than what took place in his career. “My expectation was to be a 20-year veteran, but unfortunately it didn’t work out that way,” Hill
MARTIN HILL, U.S. ARMY BY COREY DAVIS Staff Writer
CONTINUED ON B2
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THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM
JAMES MERCER, U.S. ARMY A local Army retiree has been recognized for his contributions to Rocky Mount. Retired Lt. Col. James Mercer is one of 12 inductees of the 2018 Twin County Hall of Fame. He received honors recently during the 15th Annual Induction Banquet at the Rocky Mount Event Center. “This is a big deal for me and pretty cool, I must say,� Mercer said. “What an incredible honor it is to be recognized by my community.� Mercer is the director of Military Studies at N.C. Wesleyan College and coordinates the Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program for the college. “It is an honor to train, mentor and groom cadets from college students to future officers of the active duty Army, National Guard and Army Reserve,� Mercer said. Mercer was born in Edgecombe County and raised in Nash County. He joined the Army after graduating from North Edgecombe High School. Mercer retired with 30 years of military service in the Army, Army Reserve
and the Army National Guard. During Mercer’s distinguished civilian career, he served in multiple roles including police officer and firefighter for Rocky Mount; deputy fire marshal for Nash County Emergency Services, public safety instructor at Nash and Edgecombe community colleges, director of Public Safety Training for Nash Community College, director of emergency management and fire marshal for Edgecombe County, director of Emergency Management for Fayetteville State University and later for Raleigh, where he retired in 2012. “I want to thank all those who mentored me, impacted me and helped me along the way,� Mercer said. “It was a village that got Lt. Col. James Mercer from Battleboro, North Carolina, to where I am today.� Mercer earned an associate degree from Nash Community College and a bachelor’s degree from Shaw University. He served as director of emergency management services for the city of Raleigh for 25 years and retired from the post in 2011. He and his wife, Delois, live in Nashville.
House ... But I couldn’t sue the military because I was still part of the military.� After getting out of the military, Hill went to Fayetteville Technical Community College for a year, but later left and went back home to New York to get himself together both physically and mentally. Hill said his knee eventually got better and he landed a good-paying job, working at International Paper. In 2001, 20 years after he first got injured, Hill got 100 percent disability pay. He said what he expe-
rienced will continue to push him to help veterans as much as possible. “I’ve been through a lot and in almost every case there is a veteran that has suffered something and no one can understand the pain of a veteran like another veteran,� Hill said. “I feel what I do is a calling because I’m passionate and get pleasure to help someone else get their benefits. While I still suffer some pain, I thank God that I can walk and he gives me the strength to help vets.�
BY LINDELL JOHN KAY Staff Writer
CONTINUED FROM B1
said. “I enjoyed being in the military and I would’ve never came out of the military because I loved it that much. I received a commendation from the general commander over Odierno, who said I had the potential to rise to the highest in our battalion.� Hill was 19 years old when he enlisted in the Army and 21 when he was processed out following a severe knee injury that still bothers him to this day, he said. While stationed at Fort Bragg, Hill and other battalion soldiers were
out in the field preparing for action when his leg got caught in a foxhole. “My knee broke and I didn’t know it because I thought it was fractured,� Hill said. “The medic that night took me to the commander, who was a different commander from Gen. Odierno who got promoted. He told me that he couldn’t see anything because it was at night and he needed me to continue to perform my duties ... I was the fastest man to run a specific job. This man called fire mission after
fire mission that kept me running all night.� Hill said the circumstance resulted in a life-changing experience. “It was sort of nasty that happened to my knee,� he said. “It’s something that I don’t talk about and I hate to talk about because it’s something hard to relive like being in war. The six or seven doctors that questioned me that night couldn’t understand my vital signs because I could’ve had a stroke or a heart attack.�
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Hill stayed in the Army one more year but was processed out for retirement. Hill said he received 100 percent from medical and 30 percent from his pay, which was $116 a month. The injury caused Hill to have to move around on crutches. “I couldn’t walk on my own for three years,� Hill said. “Retirement was mind blowing because here I was 21 and I couldn’t really understand at that time something like that. I remembered my mother calling the White
THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
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ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM
MIKE ROBINSON, U.S. ARMY BY COREY DAVIS Staff Writer A chemical used in the Vietnam War changed the life of a Rocky Mount man. Mike Robinson,72, served three years in the Army from 1968-70, while rising to sergeant E-5 rank. Robinson was 22 when he was sent off to fight in the Vietnam War. “Most of the boys that went on patrol with me were about 18 or 19 years old, and we all had never experienced what we had to do as far as shooting people,” Robinson said. “It was something that you will never forget.” Combat wasn’t the only life-alternating situation that modified Robinson’s life. While in Vietnam, Robinson was the victim of agent orange, a powerful herbicide that contained the deadly chemical dioxin. Agent orange was used by U.S. military forces
during the Vietnam War to eliminate forest cover and crops for North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troops. It was later reportedly proven to cause serious health issues, including cancer, birth defects, rashes and severe psychological and neurological problems among the Vietnamese people as well returning U.S. servicemen. Robinson said the affect of agent orange caused him to suffer femoral neuropathy where he can’t feel both of his legs because of damaged nerves. Robinson’s other health issues from agent orange include having Type 2 diabetes, heart problems that have led to four heart attacks and quadruple bypass surgery, three surgeries on his neck and two surgeries on his lungs for doctors to check for lung cancer. “I’m in poor health, but I do receive a 100
percent disability because I’m a disabled veteran,” Robinson said. Betty Robinson, who has been married to Mike for 30 years, said her humble husband never talks about the heroic deed he did during combat in Vietnam. “They were in the jungle and one of his friends in his group stepped on a mine,” Betty Robinson said. “It blew him up and so my husband emptied his backpack and then put the remains of him in his backpack. The other soliders were telling him to c’mon, but he said he couldn’t leave anybody behind. My husband is the reason that family knows what happened to that soldier. There were a lot of troops around there that were found. I told the general I’m proud of him for doing that even though it was dangerous. He never tells anybody what he did and I think
MARGO ASHLEY, U.S. ARMY BY LINDELL JOHN KAY Staff Writer Sgt. Margo Ashley isn’t a war hero. But she’s a provider to her family, a contributor to her community and an inspiration to her friends and coworkers. The immensely humble Army veteran — she served from 1977 to 1980 — lives in Rocky Mount, employed by Pfizer for nearly three decades. Originally from Scotland Neck, Ashley realized there just wasn’t a lot of opportunities in the small Halifax County town. “No jobs in Scotland Neck and I wanted to travel the world,” Ashley said. “I got as far as Kentucky.” Ashley went to boot camp in South Carolina. She was among the first soldiers to go through co-ed basic training. “They kept saying, ‘What Joe can do, Josephine can do, too,’” Ashley said. After job training as an admin specialist, Ashley was stationed at Fort Knox. “You know, where all the gold is,” Ashley said. She spent her short enlistment there, rising in the ranks to sergeant. She married, had a child and adopted another one. Her children would eventually give her three grandchildren. Ashley eventually made her way back to the Twin
Counties, where she has been employed at Pfizer for 29 years. When she started, the pharmaceutical company was known locally as Abbott Laboratories. It’s been almost 40 years since Ashley earned a marksmanship medal with an M-16, but she’s never forgotten her Army training. “I still fold the corners of my sheets the way I was taught,” Ashley said. “You can bounce a quarter off my bed.” Ashley said she’d recommend the military to any young adult looking for a career or a good job for a few years. “There’s no down side,” Ashley said. “The Army teaches you self-respect, respect of others and how to be on time all the time.” The military teaches responsibility. “In the Army, if you messed up, your whole platoon was punished,” she said. “You learn to take the blame. Man up. Woman up.” Soldiers also learn military bearing, something Ashley still practices. “My clothes look sharp,” Ashley said. That’s another reason to enlist: Everyone looks good in uniform. “Put anyone in a uniform, any uniform, and they look good,” Ashley said. “I hate to see someone walking around with their pants hanging off their hiney.”
Rocky Mount Eye Thanks You For Your Service Dr. Robertson Owner and Veteran USN 400 Nash Medical Arts Mall Rocky Mount, NC 27804 252.443.1006 RockyMountEye.com
Honoring Their Service & Sacrifice
it’s a real honor that he did that.” Although he suffered long-term injuries and has seen friends pass away because of the affects of agent orange, Robinson still has no regrets about his time in the Army and serving his country. “When I think back about it, the military isn’t a bad life,” Robinson said. “You travel and see the world so it’s not all the bad stuff like being in Vietnam. We have a grandson that’s in the military that has signed up for five years and is doing well.” In addition to serving in the Army, Robinson also spent 30 years as the owner of 401 Seafood Restaurant with locations in Raleigh, Garner, Cary and Henderson. Robinson retired in 2004 because of his health. “I loved it and I really thank the customers for their support over those years,” Robinson said.
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THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM
KENNETH LAUTZENHEISER, U.S. ARMY
we have in our museum are the smartest and best men you could ever meet and some of them never came home. - Kenneth Lautzenheiser
ALAN CAMPBELL/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM. U.S. Army veteran Kenneth Lautzenheiser poses Thursday, Oct. 25, 2018 in front of the Vietnam era panel of the Edgecombe County Veterans’ Military Museum mural in Tarboro.
all those war stories that some of these other veterans have,� Lautzenheiser said. It is very difficult However, Lautzento get retired Army Capt. Kenneth Lautzen- heiser does have stories about the lengths heiser to talk about his that his nation went to military career. A modest, self-effac- to protect its citizens during that time. During ing man, Lautzenheiser spends much of his time the Cold War, Lautzenheiser helped guard now helping out at the Edgecombe County Vet- Chicago by serving at a erans’ Military Museum, Nike Hercules missile site. writing and telling the “Most people have stories of other military never heard of Nike heroes. Lautzenheiser served Hercules missiles,� on active duty from 1962 Lautzenheiser said. “The knowledge of it has to 1965 and then spent almost disappeared and another six or so years in the reserves, he said. most of the sites have been converted into “I served during the parks now.� Cold War in the time The Nike Hercules between Korea and Vietnam, so I don’t have missile project was a BY AMELIA HARPER Staff Writer
defense program that was established in the 1950s and operated through the 1960s and stopped during the Vietnam War, Lautzenheiser said. “The major crisis that the Cold War brought up was the fear of attack from bombers from Russia across Canada. In the United States during that time, there were dozens of Nike Hercules missile bases surrounding all the major cities,� Lautzenheiser said “We were on constant alert for this never-occurring event. Nothing ever happened, but we were ready for them.� Lautzenheiser served as launch platoon leader
and later an executive officer in charge of one of those sites. He is amazed now at the amount of responsibility in war rests on young shoulders. “When you read stories about veterans, you think they are all about old people. But we were all exceedingly young when all this was happening. We were 18-25 years old for the most part. I was right out of college, fresh out of Reserve Officer Training. And if that event had happened, I would have been the one to hit the fire button.� Lautzenheiser said he would not have hesitated to do so. “I had already made
that decision. In war, you get split seconds. You don’t have time to agonize. That only happens on television,� Lautzenheiser said. “The idea was that we had 15 minutes from the time a bomber was detected to send up a missile. During that time, men had to track the missiles and send information so that the president or his intermediaries would make the decision to send the missile and send us that order.� In these early days, the missiles were guided by primitive computer systems. Lautzenheiser worked with intelligent men who were pushing technological boundaries of that day. With
a degree in chemistry from the University of Tennessee, Lautzenheiser fell into that category. However, he points out a life in the military always requires men and women of intelligence. “Sometimes I hear people say things like, ‘If you can’t do anything else, you can join the Army.’ And that’s just not true. The United States only takes the brightest and the best and sends them into harm’s way. The most decorated officers we have in our museum are the smartest and best men you could ever meet and some of them never came home,� Lautzenheiser said.
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As our Armed Forces fight to protect our freedom abroad, we’re reminded of the sacrifice made by so many brave soldiers before them. On Veterans Day, we pause to recognize and thank all of the veterans who have served our country. We are eternally grateful for their dedication and service.
THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
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THANK YOU!
THE ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM WOULD LIKE TO THANK OUR LOCAL VETERANS AND THOSE WHO SUBMITTED PHOTOS.
ANTHONY Malton R., Sr.
ASHLEY Margo Whitaker
AVENT John T., M.D.
BASS Samuel Manin
BATTLE Camryn A.
BATTLE Crait M.
BATTLE Claude, Jr.
BATTLE Frank Gorham, II
BATTLE Rayvon, Jr.
BEDGOOD Eddie Lee
Navy GM3C 8 Years of Service
BETHUNE Richard F.
Army Artillery 1st Lieutenant 1961-1963 - Cuban Missile Crisis
BODDIE Sam Leon
BRIDGERS Luther Ernest, Jr.
BROWN Earnest L., Jr.
BROWN Thurman Lee, Jr.
Army Master Sgt. 24 Years of Service
BULLUCK Howard
Army Master Sergeant 26 Years of Service
BULLUCK Johnnie Lee
Air Force E8 26 ½ Years of Service
Army & National Guard Staff Sgt 7 Years of Service
BRYANT William A.
Air Force Staff Sergeant 24 Years of Service
BUNN Benjamin, Jr.
CARPENTER Bobby
DAVIS Bobby Ray
DAVIS Donald Ray
DICKENS Odell
Army 6 Years of Service
Marines PFC 1959-1963
Army 1st Lieutenant 1964-1967
BULLUCK Willie J.
Army Sergeant 10 Years of Service
Army E5 1977-1980
Army PFC 1945-1947
Army Sgt 2 Years of Service (KIA)
Air Force Major 1968-1975
Army Staff Sgt. 2005-2012
Marines Cpl Vietnam Veteran
Army Specialist 4 1967-1969 - Vietnam Veteran
Air Force Colonel 30 Years of Service
Navy E-3 2 Years of Service
Army E-5 5 Years of Service
Air Force E4 Sergeant 4 Years of Service
Marines PFC 1 ½ Years of Service (KIA)
Air Force Airman 1st Class 1965-1969
The Management & Staff of
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To All Our Veterans Now Serving And All Those Who Have Served In Our Military!
Thank You For Visiting Us This Year And Special Thanks To All Our Veterans For Their Service For Our Country! HAPPY VETERANS DAY!
“God Bless You And Your Families�
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B6
THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM
FREER Arthur, Jr.
FREER James A.
FREER James R.
GAGLIANO Charles
GONZALEZ Silas
GORDON-BRAY Arnold N.
HAMMOND James A.
HARPER Boice
HARRIS Harvey Lee
HART Benjamin
HOWARD Joe Louis, Jr.
HUNTER Julius
JOHNSON Bryson
JOHNSON Leenae
JONES J.B.
JOYNER Harold C., Sr.
JOYNER Harold C., Jr.
JOYNER Zy’Keith M.
KENNEDY Andrew Jackson
KENNEDY Andrew (Jack) Jr.
KENNEDY James Henry
KENNEDY Robert Dean (Bobby)
KENNEDY Theodore
KING Kenneth Albert
Army 82nd Airborne Division Sergeant 2 Years of Service
Air Force E6 1959-1979
Navy Petty Officer 4 Years of Service
Army World War I 1918-1919
LEGGETTE L. Nelson
Air Force Sgt. 2 Years of Service
Navy GM63 4 Years of Service
Air Force AIC 4 Years of Service
CPL 3 Years of Service
Air Force Sgt. 4 Years of Service
Air Force 22 Years of Service
Army Staff Sergeant 20 Years of Service
Army Corporal 1944-1946
Army 22 Years of Service 1959-1980
Army Sgt 3 Years of Service
Army Spec 4 1966-1968
Air Force Airman 1st Class 1951-1955
Air Force Active Reserve July 2018-Currently Serving
Marines & National Guard PFC 1988-1993
Air Force Senior Airman AIC 1996-2000
Air Core PFC 1942-1945
Army BG 34 Years of Service
Air Force 30 Years of Service
Army 14 G Air Defense 2015-Currently Serving
Army Corporal AIB 1953-1955 - German Occupation Forces
Air Force/Army Col. 24 Year of Service
LEWIS Clarence H.
Navy 1 Year of Service
LEWIS Levern N.
LEWIS Micheal E.
LONG William L., Sr.
LONG William L., Jr.
LUCAS Brandon
LUCAS Brandy
LUCAS Raymond
MANZEL Charles H.
Navy HTC 20 Years of Service
MATTHEWS James W.
Army Sgt 221 Aviation Company 1 ½ Years of Service Vietnam Veteran
PARKER Harry Jr.
PEELE Leon
PITTIMAN Storkey T.
POWELL John G.
POWELL Otis C.
QUIGLEY Thomas
RHODES Bobby D.
Navy Lieutenant 6 Years of Service
Army Spec 4 E4 3 Years Active/3 Years Reserve
Navy Lieutenant 8 Years of Service
Army Sgt. 2 Years of Service
Army Sgt. 2 Years of Service
Army Sgt 2 Years of Service
Navy 1950-1954
Army/Air Force Sgt E7 20 Years of Service
Army Spec 5 1970-1971
Army PFC 1941-1945
Marines Sgt. 8 Years of Service
Army Sgt E5 1966-1968
Army Sgt. E5 4 Years of Service
Army 1949-1952
THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM
ROBERSON Ronnie
ROBINSON William M.
ROSE James C.
SEARS Earl O.
SHARPE Jackson T.
SHARPE Milton A.
SHAW Ellis Mack
SHERROD Charlie J.
SHERROD Daniel Willie
SHRAGO Harry I.
SHRAGO William
SILVER Mark
SILVER Melvin
SMITH James L.
SMITH William Douglas
THORPE Joseph
THORPE Russell
TILLMAN Herbert B.
UNGER Peter E. Navy Sailor 1967-1972
WATFORD Heyward W.
Army Specialist E4 1966-1970
WATSON Milton
WEAVER Lester Eugene
WHITAKER James
WHITEHEAD Dan A.
WHITEHEAD Elbert S.
WHITEHEAD George, Jr.
WHITEHEAD Selesta
WHITEHEAD Selesta, Jr.
WHITEHURST Allen Kyle
WHITEHURST James Allen
Alston, Robert L.
Battle, Willie G.
Sgt 2 Years of Service
Army/National Guard Sergeant 9 Years of Service
Army Sgt. 2 Years of Service
Air Force 21 Years of Service
Army S4 1985-1989
Army Sgt 1968-1970
Army/ Marines Communication 6 Years of Service
Army Specialist First Class 1951-1952
Air Force SMSGT 28 Years of Service
Army PFC 1944-1945 WW II
Air Force PFC Military Police 6 Years of Service
Coast Guard/Army TTC 23 Years of Service
Army E7 Sgt. 1st Class 22 Years of Service
Army SPC 3 1944-1946
Army Signal Corps Cpl 2 Years of Service - Korean War
US Army WW I
Army 2 Years of Service
Army /National Guard Sgt. Major 43 Years of Service
Army SPC 3 2 Years of Service
Air Force Sgt 27 Years of Service
Anthony, Malton Ray Army Sgt 4 Years of Service
WHITEHURST James Cecil Air Force Tec/Sgt 20 Years of Service
WILLIAMS W.T.
Army E3 2 Years of Service
WILLIAMS-BEASLEY Robert Army Lieutenant General 15 Years of Service
Arrington, Kenneth Army SP4 2 Years of Service
Arrington, Russell Army SP4 3 Years of Service
Avent, Bronis
Army SP4 2 Years of Service
Battle, Anothy
Marines Sgt 8 Years of Service
Battle, Garfield Army E5 2 Years of Service
Air Force AIC 4 Years of Service
Air Force 1st Lieutenant 1950-1953
Navy 2 Years of Service
Army Staff Sergeant E6 26 Years of Service
Navy IT2 7 Years of Service
Army 3 Years of Service WW II Veteran
Beaufort, Clarence Army Sgt
Boone, Horace
Air Force Sgt 3 Years of Service
Brown, Joseph
Army Sgt 3 Years of Service
Bryant, James E. Army SP4 6 Years of Service
Bunn, James Air Force
Coley, John
Army Sgt 2 Years of Service
Coley, Thomas Army
Air Force AIC E4 4 Years of Service
Air Force 21 Years of Service
Army Airborne Sgt E5 1963-1966
Air Force Master Sgt 22 Years of Service
Army Spec4 4 Years of Service
Cooper, David
Navy Sgt 25 Years of Service
Cooper, Jr., James E. Army SP/5 3 Years of Service
Crews, Otto M. Navy
Daniels, Clarence Air Force Master Sgt. 24 Years of Service
Daniels, Waverly Army 1st Sgt Master Sgt. 24 Years of Service
Dancy, Larry
Army Sgt 3 Years of Service
Davis, Petronee Air Force Sgt
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THE DAILY REFLECTOR/ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2018
ROCKY MOUNT TELEGRAM 4 Years of Service
Dickens, Bobby E. Army Sgt 2 Years of Service
Dickens, Harry
PFC 4 Years of Service
Sgt 3 Years of Service
Hagwood, L.B.
Horne, Larry
Navy MoMM2 1943-1945
Army SP4 2 Years of Service
Army SSG 3 Years of Service (Vietnam Veteran) Purple Heart
Hagwood, Lawrence M.
Dickens, Kary
Hagwood, Nathan B.
Army 1st Sgt. 24 Years of Service
Draughn, Kendra T. Army Sgt 13 Years of Service
Evans, David W.
Marines Sgt. Major E9 30 Years of Service
Fox, Johnnie
Army Sgt 8 Years of Service
Fox, Lorenzo
Army SP4 1 Year of Service (KIA)
Fuller, Joseph F. Air Force
Grant Jr., Claude Army Sgt 2 Years of Service
Gray, Chester T. Navy E5 3 Years of Service
Gray, Courney
Marines 1st Lieutenant 1976-1980
Army
Army SP4 2 Years of Service
Harris, Jerome
Jones, Percy
Marines Sergeant 2 Years of Service
Army 2 Years of Service
King, Charlie
Harris Sr., Marice B. Army 2 Years of Service
Army Sgt 3 Years of Service
Harris Jr., Marice B.
Knight, Ernest
Air Force 2 Years of Service
Air Force Sgt 4 Years of Service
Harris, Nathan
Knight, Joe A.
Navy 2 Years of Service
Harris, Odessa Bryant Army Sgt 20 Years of Service
Harrison, Donald A. Air Force Master Sgt. 18 Years of Service
Marines Sergeant 8 Years of Service
Lynch, Glandus
Air Force SP4 3 Years of Service
Air Force S.M. Sgt. 22 ½ Years of Service
Lynch, Thomas
Hedgepeth, Jeremiah
Hill Sr., Archadle
Marines E5 5 Years of Service
Lewis Sr., Robert B.
Harrison, Robert M.
Army PFC 3 Years of Service
Marines Sgt 4 Years of Service
Knight, William
Harrison, Ronald A.
Gray, William Eddie
Jones, Lorenzo
Army SP4 2 Years of Service
Gray, Richard E.
Navy 4 Years of Service
Army Sergeant 20 Years of Service
Harper, Weldon Ray
Army E4 2 Years of Service
Gray, Rodney
Air Force Master Sgt 30 Years of Service
Johnson, Elvin U.
Marines CPL 2005-2009
Navy 4 Years of Service Army Sgt 2 Years of Service
Hunter, Julius
Air Force Sgt. 4 Years of Service
Mann Sr., Calvin Navy Sgt 4 Years of Service
Army
Mercer, Debra
Randolph, Raymond
Air Force Sgt 20 Years of Service
Army Sgt 25 Years of Service
Mercer, William
Royster, Alton
Air Force Sgt 10 Years of Service
Air Force Master Sgt 12 Years of Service
Milbourne, Rodney
Sessoms, Carmillus
Army Sgt 3 Years of Service
Air Force Sgt 22 Years of Service
Modlinm, Ray A.
Silver, Floyd
Army Sgt 11 Years of Service
Moody, Willie Army Sgt 1966-1968
Moore, Malachi
Parker, Debra
Army E4 3 Years of Service
Parker, Harold
Army Sgt 3 Years of Service
Phillips, Colbert Army Sgt 2 Years of Service
Phillips, Milton Air Force Sgt 4 Years of Service
Randolph, Dennis Earl Air Force Sgt 25 Years of Service
Randolph, Edgar Ray Army Sgt 3 Years of Service
Air Force Master Sgt 20 Years of Service
Whitehead, Alexander Army Sgt 2 Years of Service
Whitehead, Donald Army Sgt 20 Years of Service
Whitehead, Donald Navy Sgt 25 Years of Service
Speight, James E.
Stokes, Elton
Army Sgt 2 Years of Service
Whitakers Sr., Walter
Army/Air Force Sgt 19 Years of Service
Morgan Sr., Leodus Noel, Richard
Army Sgt 4 Years of Service
Spaton, Donald
Army Sgt 20 Years of Service
Army
Whitakers, Garvin
Army Sgt 3 Years of Service
Army 2 Years of Service
Whitehead, Frank D. Army Sgt 3 Years of Service
Air Force/Army Sergeant 20 Years
Whitehead, James D. Army Sgt 3 Years of Service
Taylor Sr, Melvin Air Force Sgt 8 Years of Service
Whitehead, Marcas Army Sgt 10 Years of Service
Taylor Jr., Melvin Air Force Sgt 4 Years of Service
William, Albert Air Force Sgt 15 Years of Service
Thorne Sr., Robert Air Force Sgt 4 Years of Service
William, Daryl
Thorpe, Hugh
Army E6 20 Years of Service
Army Sergeant 2 Years of Service
Washington, Coley
William, David
Marines 2 Years of Service (KIA)
Whitaker, Alvin
3Years of Service
Army Sgt
William, Robert
Army Sgt 3 Years of Service
Air Force Sgt 4 Years of Service
Whitaker, Anthony
William, William H.
Army Sgt
Army Sgt E7 23 Years of Service
With Gratitude, Happy Veterans Day!
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Our respect and gratitude will forever be with our fallen military heroes and their families. Their service and sacrifice are beyond measure, and we will never forget their dedication to our country and our freedom.