Group to honor Medal of Honor recipients.
[...] On March 25 at noon the Delaware Medal of Honor Historical Association will pay tribute to [Sgt. William] Nelson and all who have received the nation's highest award for valor, including 13 other Delawareans.I wish I could attend this ceremony and honor my state's MOH heroes.The ceremony honoring the recipients will be held at Dover Air Force Base's Air Mobility Command Museum.
"These recipients received their Medals of Honor for their actions against the enemy under combat conditions, above and beyond the call of duty at the risk of their life," said Paul Cathell, association founder and president. "They did not 'win' the Medal of Honor for it is not a lottery or a game and the word 'winners' is not part of their vocabulary."
Cathell said the museum is an ideal location for the annual ceremony because its displays include the "Hallway of Heroes," which has more than 800 photos and memorabilia from Medal of Honor recipients.
The association is trying to convince the federal government to declare March 25 a national holiday to honor and remember the nation's Medal of Honor recipients, Cathell said. The first Medal of Honor was awarded on March 25, 1863.
Major Gen. Frank Vavala, adjutant general of the Delaware National Guard, will be among the speakers at the ceremony.
"It's always appropriate to honor our heroes, but these 14 Delawareans deserve special recognition," Vavala said.
Descendants of seven of Delaware's Medal of Honor recipients will attend the March 25 ceremony at the air base, Cathell said. Among those will be descendants of Sgt. William Nelson, he said.
Heck, I'd like to just be there for a homecoming ceremony for troops returning from overseas but the Delaware Army National Guard's 280th Signal Battalion just came home a month ago.
Posted by Kyer at March 22, 2006 12:24 PM | TrackBack