A solemn salute in Lynn

This brought back a lot of memories for me living in Massachusetts. I started writing into the Item, Letters to the Editor so many years ago, it's hard to remember most of them. Some of my fondest memories as going to Fraser field and see the traveling Wall come into the city. So many veterans from all wars gathering together among a sea of citizens holding flags and generations of families making sure the young never forget that all they have and enjoy came with a price. Mothers explained to young children what the names meant. Old veterans teary eyed standing in front of it an knowing full well what it meant as they remembered their own brothers long gone from this earth but not from their hearts.

Great sadness comes over me when I know that feeling, as deep as it is, for those who have not served, fade away so easily. They go home, go about their own lives, and forget all about how they felt standing in front of that black wall. So few in this country know what happened to the men and women that came home because of the over 58,000 names they see. Maybe their hearts just can't take more and knowing how many died because of Agent Orange or suicides or homelessness, would just be too much to take in. I don't know why people may be transformed for an hour or so and then just move on, but I am grateful these people bother to show up. Too many others don't.

To Thor in case you read this,,,wow do I miss my city! I've been home 9 times in 5 years.

A solemn salute in Lynn


By Thor Jourgensen / The Daily Item

LYNN - "This makes you understand," said Kenneth Mailloux Thursday night, minutes after he joined other loved ones in presenting a wreath in memory of his uncle, John, at The Wall That Heals on Fraser Field.

Mailloux and the relatives of 18 other Lynn residents who lost their lives in the Vietnam War saluted their brothers, son, uncles and nephews Thursday evening as an appreciative crowd applauded.

The two-hour event began with the posting of the colors and ended with a bagpiper playing as he slowly walked the length of the 250-foot, half-sized version of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington D.C. "Some of my men are on that wall," said Vietnam veteran and North Shore Community College President Wayne Burton as he watched the wreath-laying ceremony that included a presentation by Colleen Piper and Marblehead veterans in honor of the late Christopher Piper.

Medal of Honor recipient and state Veterans Services Secretary Thomas Kelley said the wall is a salute to courage and sacrifice.
read more here
http://www.thedailyitemoflynn.com/articles/2009/08/28/news/news01.txt

Medal of Honor for Thomas Kelley
Medal of Honor




KELLEY, THOMAS G.



Rank and organization: Lieutenant Commander, U.S. Navy, River Assault Division



Place and date: Ong Muong Canal, Kien Hoa Province, Republic of Vietnam, 15 June 1969



Entered service at: Boston, Massachusetts



Born: 13 May 1939, Boston, Massachusetts



Citation:



For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty in the afternoon while serving as commander of River Assault Division 152 during combat operations against enemy aggressor forces. Lt. Comdr. (then Lt.) Kelley was in charge of a column of 8 river assault craft which were extracting 1 company of U.S. Army infantry troops on the east bank of the Ong Muong Canal in Kien Hoa Province, when 1 of the armored troop carriers reported a mechanical failure of a loading ramp.
At approximately the same time, Viet Cong forces opened fire from the opposite bank of the canal. After issuing orders for the crippled troop carrier to raise its ramp manually, and for the remaining boats to form a protective cordon around the disabled craft, Lt. Comdr. Kelley realizing the extreme danger to his column and its inability to clear the ambush site until the crippled unit was repaired, boldly maneuvered the monitor in which he was embarked to the exposed side of the protective cordon in direct line with the enemy's fire, and ordered the monitor to commence firing.
Suddenly, an enemy rocket scored a direct hit on the coxswain's flat, the shell penetrating the thick armor plate, and the explosion spraying shrapnel in all directions. Sustaining serious head wounds from the blast, which hurled him to the deck of the monitor, Lt. Comdr. Kelley disregarded his severe injuries and attempted to continue directing the other boats. Although unable to move from the deck or to speak clearly into the radio, He succeeded in relaying his commands through 1 of his men until the enemy attack was silenced and the boats were able to move to an area of safety.
Lt. Comdr. Kelley's brilliant leadership, bold initiative, and resolute determination served to inspire his men and provide the impetus needed to carry out the mission after he was medically evacuated by helicopter. His extraordinary courage under fire, and his selfless devotion to duty sustain and enhance the finest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.
http://www.mishalov.com/Kelley.html