26-05-2025
Bay County holds annual Memorial Day Ceremony
BAY COUNTY, Fla. (WMBB) – Dozens of community members gathered Monday morning at Kent-Forest Lawn Cemetery in solemn remembrance of America's fallen heroes.
The Memorial Day ceremony paid tribute to the men and women who gave their lives in service to the nation.
'It's beyond awesome to be able to come here today to honor the men and women that have fought and died for our country,' Master of Ceremonies and Vietnam Veteran William Paul said. 'That allows us to be here to do this today. An honor that I cannot tell you. That is great. And seeing the World War II veterans that are here and all of the others that are able to come here who actually sacrificed so that we can be here today.'
The ceremony began with an invocation, followed by patriotic songs, the Pledge of Allegiance, and the National Anthem.
An especially meaningful moment of the event was the wreath-laying ceremony, a solemn tradition meant to recognize and remember service members who made the ultimate sacrifice.
Among those in attendance was Michael Walker and his family, there to honor his uncle, Private Vernon R. Miller.
'Private Vernon R. Miller was killed in action in Korea on October 9, 1951,' Walker shared. 'For years, until my mother passed away in 2010, she never really fully believed that he was gone. She felt that he was a prisoner of war somewhere. And she looked for him everywhere.'
Walker emphasized the importance of preserving and sharing veterans' stories.
'We feel that if we don't continue to come here and tell their stories, their stories will be gone. And there's no bringing them back once there was,' he said. 'Vernon was a very young, very strong man who left as a 19-year-old. In the last month of his service, he was awarded the Bronze Star with Valor and also the Silver Star. The Silver Star was awarded to him and signed on the very day that he was killed in action. So he never even knew that he had received the Silver Star. That's the story that we always bring with us.'
In keeping with national tradition, the ceremony concluded with a call to participate in the National Moment of Remembrance, observed each Memorial Day at 3 p.m.
'We ask that you stop for one minute and just remember those that are fallen,' Paul said.
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