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U.S. Officially Ends Iraqi War During Ceremonies

During military ceremonies today that folded the U.S. Forces-Iraq flag, U.S. military officially ended the war with Iraq, dubbed Operation Iraqi Freedom when the war began almost nine years ago, toppling then-dictator Saddam Hussein.
When fighting started in March 2003 with its campaign of shock and awe, the United States was  rescuing the people of Iraq from a tyrant supposedly armed with nuclear weapons. In general knowledge, it turned out that Saddam never had nuclear weapons, and if he did, they were gone by the time U.S. troops arrived or soon thereafter. 

Still, America had toppled Iraq's leader and thrown its military into disarray. President George Bush and the U.S. were obligated to help establish a new government and put the Middle East country back together while trying to stave off the influence of surrounding nations that, mostly, had been kept at bay by Hussein. That proved to be waaaaay easier said than done as the U.S. and its partners gave their time, effort, money and the lives of military personnel fighting insurgents resistant to the U.S. presence, as well as sectarian violence that also had been mostly under control during Saddam's brutal reign.    

Leon Panetta Announces Official End of War
Fox News/Thursday, December 15, 2011

Today, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said the war was worth the blood and expense because ii brought democracy to Iraq. During nine years of conflict, some 4,500 Americans lost their lives, 32,000 were wounded, 100,000 Iraqis were killed, and the U.S. spent $800 billion.

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/politics/2011/12/15/iraq-leon-panetta-announces-official-end-war/

By Sunday, all combat troops are expected to be out of Iraq, heading into Kuwait as troops return to the U.S. by, or soon thereafter the Christmas holiday.

Part of Miss. 98 Named for Pearl Harbor Veteran

LUCEDALE -- It's been 70 years coming, but A.C. Hillman will receive honor and appreciation that Americans continue to bestow upon servicemen who fought off the air and naval fighters who attacked the country's Pacific fleet in 1941.

A.C. Hillman, now 91, was aboard the USS Utah when Japanese warplanes and submarines attacked Pearl Harbor in Hawaii on Dec. 7 exactly 70 years ago today. A portion of U.S. 98 will be dedicated in his honor this Pearl Harbor Day.

Hillman and other sailors abandoned ship after using a machine gun aboard the USS California, which sank, to help stop the surprise attack that pulled the United States into World War II, something the country had been trying to directly avoid, though there had been some unofficial aide given to countries in Europe. Until that time, the country's attitude had been one of isolation, though the U.S. government and countries in the Pacific had been afraid of Japanese expansion on the region.

Our history books tell us that some 2,400 military and civilian personnel lost their lives that day. It's estimated that half of those who died were aboard the USS Arizona, which was hit by a torpedo early in the attack and sank quickly. Overall, 1,178 were wounded.

More than 21 ships were sunk or damaged, including eight battleships. All but two -- USS Arizona and USS Utah -- were raised and used during World War II, according to wikipedia.

Today, numerous services are being held across the nation, including one in Lucedale that will rename a portion of U.S. 98 in George County for Hill.  The section is between Mississippi 198 and the George-Greene County line.

According to wikipedia, U.S. Route 98 is an east-west United States highway that runs from western Mississippi to southern Florida. It was established in 1933 as a route between Pensacola, Fla., and Apalachicola, Fla., and has since been extended westward into Mississippi and eastward across the Florida Peninsula. It runs along much of the Gulf Coast between Mobile, Ala., and Crystal River, Fla., including extensive sections closely following the coast between Mobile and St. Marks, Fla.

As of 2005, the highway's western terminus is near Washington, Miss., at U.S. Route 61. Its eastern terminus is Palm Beach, Fla., at State Road A1A.

Ceremonies for the A.C. Hillman Highway take place at 6 p.m. today at the George County Middle School Activities Building, 330 Church St., Lucedale.

Because of the ages of the WWII veterans, most in their 80s and 90s, the national Pearl Harbor Survivors Assocation and it local affiliates will disband this year.

Salute And Honor on Holiday Hiatus

NOTICE TO SALUTE AND HONOR FOLLOWERS:

Except for special events, this blog will not post updates during December 2011.

However, please follow 2011 posts that may be updated and edited for additional coverage of some events during the year.

THANK YOU so very much for your interest, and KEEP FOLLOWING us. 

During this hiatus, please add your comments to 2011 and previous posts. ALSO, let us know what you'd like to see in future posts to SaluteAndHonor.blogspot.com

Vivian Austin -- 228-623-8883

Wounded Warrior Walk to Help Veteran

BILOXI -- The Wounded Warrior Walk across the Biloxi Bay Bridge will help Army Sgt. Sjosterner Ellis of Columbus. 

The walk took place Saturday, Nov. 26, under sunny skies, and saw numerous active duty military personnel, veterans, their family members, and community residents make their way across the expanse between Biloxi and Ocean Springs.

Donna Anderson of Ocean Springs, a wounded warrior case manager at Keesler Air Force Base,      and Ret. Air Force Staff Sgt. Naomi Mathis founded the walk's sponsor, Combat Wounded Veterans of South Mississippi, during February.

www.WoundedWarriorProject.org

CWVSM helps veterans with every day financial problems while they wait for Veteran Administration benefits. So far, according to Anderson, they have provided aid to five veterans who have made the transition back to civilian life.   

Ellis, a Purple Heart recipient, was wounded while serving in Iraq, according to media reports.

Walk Raises Money for Wounded Vets
Sun Herald/Sunday, November 27, 2011
Photo Gallery: Wounded Warriors Project 

South Mississippians Walk for Warriors
WLOX TV-13/Saturday, November 26-27, 2011

Operation Never Forget Wants New Home for Seabee Baldwin

BILOXI -- Claudia Baldwin wants to see the bust of her husband -- Builder Chief Joel Baldwin -- put on permanent display at the Seabee base or at the Naval Construction Training Center. Right now the bust is at Negroto's Gallery in Biloxi, where it was unveiled on Monday.

Operation Never Forget Honors Local Hero
Sun Herald/Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011

Baldwin, a builder chief at Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 7 (MCB-7), died in Iraq during 2004.

Operation Never Forget, according to the Sun Herald, is a nonprofit charity that memorializes fallen service members with bronze bust statues. About 24 busts have been created since 2007, and more are in progress. Each statue costs about $6,000, and are paid for through community fundraisers, the media quoted Operation officials.

New Faces Join Veterans at Breakfast

Donald Evans (left), who served in the Persia Gulf, and Jimmy Cox, an Army infantryman, attended the Veterans' Breakfast on Monday. Cox was a first-timer, but Evans has attended about 12 years. Assistant Superintendent (top) Bernard Rogers, school board officials Dan Marks and Mike Concannon were at the military celebration for local veterans.

Wally Molby, who turns 80 on Wednesday, served in the Air Force during the Korean War. "This thing here is the most wonderful thing that's happened to me since I've been a veteran."

GAUTIER -- Jimmy Cox was among the first-time veterans who attended the Veterans' Breakfast held Monday at Gautier High School.

Teachers, students, and district officials have sponsored the morning meal and honor program for 12 years.  

"I've been intending to come and I've always been working," said Cox. "I set aside time to come this year."
Cox served in the infantry from 1969 to 1970 during the Vietnam War. "This is wonderful," he said of the breakfast.

Cox's friend Donald Evans has attended the Veterans' Breakfast almost since its inception.

"I do it every year," he said. "I missed the first year."

He comes because of the honor and to meet friends. "A lot of these guys I've been knowing since my childhood. I didn't know they were Vietnam vets."

Evans served in the Navy, and jokingly says that his friends put on the wrong uniform. "These guys just signed the wrong papers."

(Look for more information, quotes and photographs in future updates.)

An 800-Mile Walk for Their Fallen Comrades

GAUTIER -- By the time the clock neared 2:45 p.m., Chief Master Sgt.Lee Shaffer and Ret. Major Tom Newman had made their way to the highway entrance of Shell Landing on U.S. 90.
Gautier police accompanied the men, two among 18 airmen on an 812-mile trek to honor fallen comrades of special tactics in the U.S. Air Force -- the Tim Davis Memorial March.
Information at www.specialopswalk.com said the march helps to raise funds for the Special Ops Foundation, which provides support for families of deceased special ops airmen.
Residents follow the airmen and post photographs at www.facebook.com/afsocofficial.
Schaffer and Newman were walking east toward Pascagoula, wearing an orange safety vest and carrying an American flag and 50-pound snap sacks. The march's bus and the remaining airmen were behind at a distance, though they soon passed their fellow airmen on foot.
Newman said the march started at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, and is will conclude Wednesday, Oct. 26, at Hurlbert Field in Florida.
Mississippi is one of five states included in the trek, which also passes through Texas, Louisiana, Alabama and Florida.
On their eastbound journey, 18 airmen, their tour bus and other equipment arrived in Gulfport about 5 a.m. today, said reports at WLOX TV-13. They visited Biloxi High School and stopped near Keesler Air Force Base, where Keesler personnel joined the memorial marchers for about three miles, according to the Sun Herald.
They then proceeded through Ocean Springs, Gautier and Pascagoula, and on eastward into Alabama on Monday.

Fallen airmen honored in third memorial march
The Sun Herald/Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Elite Air Force's unit march honors fallen airmen
Mississippi Press/Tuesday, October 25, 2011

This year marks the third for the memorial march, and 2011 specifically honors Tech Sgts. John Brown and Daniel Zerbe and Staff Sgt. Andy Harvell. They died Aug. 6 when their aircraft was shot down in Afghanistan, according to local media.

Honor Flight Booth At Jackson County Fair

PASCAGOULA -- Jen Walton said that t-shirts for the Honor Flight will be available at the Jackson County Fair this week at the group's booth in the county's civic center.

The booth will be open from 5 to 9 p.m.

Volunteers will be allowed to provide a shirt and other items for donations to the Honor Flight program.

Applications for guardians and veterans will be available at the booth.

Volunteers are needed.

Veterans Parade Set for Memorial Monument in Moss Point

Keepsake Quilt for Her Daughter the Airman

OCEAN SPRINGS -- Check out a story in Tuesday's (Sept. 27, 2011) sunherald.com about Airman 1st Class Alexa Pelton, who graduated from Ocean Springs High, and her mother, Kim Locke.


Locke made a keepsake quilt out of old T-shirts for her Air Force daughter, who will deploy overseas in October. Pelton, 20, is stationed now at Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in Colorado. The shirts depict various memories from Pelton's high school years.

Vets Receive Grand Welcome Home Again

Veterans return from Washington,D.C., on Wednesday after second Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight.
Some 2,000 people awaited their return, offering cheers, hugs, handshakes, and music at the airport in Gulfport.

Honor Guard escorts 86 veterans from World War II into Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport after their return Wednesday night from viewing their memorial and other war sites in the nation's capital.




Members of the Navy, Marines and Army, airport officials and public formed a corridor of state flags for the returning veterans.

Family members wait for their loved ones.

Banners, signs, t-shirts, arm bands, mini-flags, posters, huge portrait, and other items were on display for the veterans.

Mitchell Cirlot, a guardian for the Honor Flight on May 11 this year, was at Gulfport's airport to greet the veterans aboard the second Honor Flight on Sept. 21.

Joy Mangum (right) waited to greet the veterans as well as her husband, Supervisor Mike Mangum, who was one of the Honor Flight guardians this year. She came to the Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport early to get a good place to wait for the returning WWII veterans.

Members of the Joppa Shrine talk while waiting for the return of the Honor Flight, which was delayed about an hour because of weather in Virginia.

GULFPORT -- The airport's lobby had filled with people and activities long before 87 veterans making the second Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight returned from the nation's capital Wednesday. Military personnel and residents started to arrive in earnest about 4 p.m.

Eric Hausken, and construction mechanic, sets up a flag.

Roanna, a volunteer with Honor Flight, took a water break before returning to her duties while waiting for the veterans to arrive. "I helped them get their orientation stuff ready."

Roanna had returned to Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport to pick up the two guardians she'd dropped off during the early morning. "I will be over there cutting cake or selling t-shirts, I'm not sure which," she said. "I told them ya'll gone be bringing me next time if I get to be a guardian.

"They are so excited, all of them," she said of the veterans, "like when I meet them at orientation. It's just amazing."

The veterans had been expected to arrive between 7:30 and 8 p.m., but were nearly an hour late when their flight was delayed on its return to the airport.

Watch Honor Flight video on YouTube:

Still, their families and friends, government and airport officials, high school students, Boy Scouts, and military personnel from the Air Force, Navy and Army waited patiently along a human corridor of honor to greet the returning veterans after a day spent visiting the World War II Memorial and other military sites.

Roanna Sabree and her stepmom, Dorothy Pigott, waited for her father, Vernon Pigott of Picayune. "He's 90, so I've very excited," Sabree said before the veterans arrived. "Mostly, I'm glad he lived long enough to be able to do this. It's wonderful thing."

Mitchell Cirlot said he couldn't miss being in Gulfport for the return of the former military personnel, including three women this time. He had served as a guardian during the first Honor Flight on May 11.
"They were like me. They said they had to come back."
He had wanted to serve again as a guardian, but apparently there were more than enough people who also wanted to serve as companions. "He said the had so many people applying with the money in hand they had to turn them away. It's unreal."
When the honorees paraded across the airport floor, Cirlot first saluted then shook hands with many of the returning veterans.

The daylong trip included a personal visit to the WWII site built for the veterans who served during the war that officially lasted from 1939 to 1945. There the veterans also ate lunch and met Rep. Steven Palazzo and Sen. Roger Wicker.

Following the WWII site, the veterans and their guardians continued on a bus tour of Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam, Iwo Jima Memorial, and Korean sites, and ended the tour at Arlington National Cemetery to watch the changing of the guard. he veterans also had a bus tour of the monuments for the Iwo Jima.

Sabree and Cook greeted the veterans heartily to military music provided by the band at Keesler Air Force Base.
"Thank you for coming," said one veteran as he shook hands with the greeters. "We had a good time... and we didn't even drink," he said laughing.

1108th Theater Aviation Sustainment Unit Deploys to Kuwait

GULFPORT -- By now, members of the Mississippi Army National Guard's 1108th Theater Aviation Sustainment Unit should be in Kuwait.

The unit deployed Sunday, Sept. 18, from the Gulfport Combat Readiness Training Center on Hewes Avenue.

About 600 people attended the farewell ceremony, which included an Honor Guard and rounds of applause for the 140 guard members as well as their families, according to the Sun Herald. Republican Rep. Steven Palazzo, a former marine, spoke to the military personnel.

The National Guard unit is one of four of its kind in the U.S., and will provide high-level aviation maintenance. They will have detachments in Iraq, Saudi Arabia and the Horn of Africa, the newspaper reports.


Every time we say goodbye:
Families bid farewell to guard unit headed for Kuwait
The Sun Herald/Monday, September 19, 2011

Photos of Farewell Ceremony

1 More Day Until Honor Flight 2

Clara Webb, Barbara Chachitz and Katherine Gill (Photos/stories found at Mississippi Press)

PASCAGOULA -- Of the 87 veterans expected to make the second trip for Mississipi Gulf Coast Honor Flight, three are women.

Clara Webb, Barbara Chachitz and Katherine Gill are among the former military personnel who will make the trip to Washington, D.C., to visit the World War II Memorial, other war sites and civilian monuments.

The Sept. 21 journey, the second since the initial Honor Flight on May 11, includes the veterans, their guardians, Honor Flight staff, medical team and local media, who will depart from and return to Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport off U.S. 49.

ITINERARY:

4:30 a.m. -- Assemble at Joppa Shrine Center in Woolmarket.

5:30 a.m. -- Buses leave for Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport.

6:30 a.m. -- U.S. Air charter departs Gulfport.

8:38 a.m. -- Land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Washington, D.C.

9:30 a.m. -- Buses depart for WWI Memorial

10 a.m. -- Bagpipe procession and wreath-laying at WWIII Memorial

10:30 a.m. to noon -- Box lunches at WWII Memorial; continue visit of WWII Memorial

Noon -- Depart WWII Memorial on driving tour of other sites.

12:15 p.m. -- Arrive at Lincoln, Korean and Vietnam War memorials.

1:45 -- Depart Lincoln Memorial.

2 p.m. -- Arrive at Iwo Jima Memorial.

2:25 p.m. -- Depart Iwo Jima Memorial.

2:45 p.m. -- Arrive at Arlington National Cemetery.

3 p.m. -- Observe Changing of the Guard.

3:15 p.m. -- Observe wreath-laying.

4 p.m. -- Depart for Reagan airport

5:30 p.m. -- Depart from Washington, D.C.

7:50 p.m. -- Arrive at Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport.

Press Lets Public Get to Know Honor Flight Veterans

World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C.

PASCAGOULA -- Over the past several weeks, the Mississippi Press has been releasing the names and photographs of veterans expected to make a trip to the U.S. capital during the second Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight set for Wednesday, Sept. 21.
The Press calls the segment "Meet the Heroes."
If you missed the 87 men and women veterans in the newspaper, you may follow the above link to see who will be traveling to the World War II Memorial on Sept. 21 in Washington, D.C.

Some of the veterans making the trip:
William Kimble of Pass Christian, Gerald Klecker of Pascagoula, J.G. Lewis of Wesson, Darwin Maples of Lucedale; Angelo Papale of Gulfport; Eugene Spearman of Saltillo, Homer Wales of Gautier, Clara Webb of Biloxi, Barbara Chachitz of Biloxi, Stanley Fiveash of Poplarlville;
Edward Huse of Slidell; Edwin Mauterer of Diamondhead; Harry Quinn of Madison; Herbert Tepper of Hattiesburg, Claiborne Traweek of Quitman; Dorris Ward, General Bullock of Moss Point; Robert Horne Sr. of Lucedale; David Dotson of Winona, Max Juchheu of Grenada, Robert Clunie of Hattiesburg;
Richard Anglin of Tupelo, Katherine Gill of Biloxi, Jeff Haynie of Gulfport, Glen Norwood of Oxford, James Oakes of Hattiesburg, John Rhymes of Monticello, Harold Roberts of Collins, James Roberts of Greenwood, Lloyd Thurman of Silver Creek and Leonard Warren Hazelhurst.

Herman Abbey of Byram, Walter Barnham of Hattiesburg, Edward Bishop of Meridian, Jack Creech of Hattiesburg, Otey Jackson Jr. of Macon, Victor Lee of Hattiesburg, Noah Mills of Carthage, M.L. McCormick of Gautier, Robert Reeves of Diamonhead, Joseph Sasser of Carthage, John Stonecypher of Lucedale.

Information and applications are available at MS Gulf Coast Honor Flight, P.O. Box 1912, Gautier, MS 39553, by e-mail at mgchonorflight@gmail.com, and at http://www.mgchonorflight.org/.
Donations mailed to Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight, c/o Kiwanis Division 14 Foundation, 516 Brandi Lane, Gulfport, MS 39507. Contributions also may be made at any Hancock Bank.

The daylong trip will include visits to the World War II Memorial, Vietnam War Memorial, Korean War Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Iwo Jima Monument, and to the Arlington National Cemetery to view the changing of the guard.

Obama Presents Medal of Honor to Sgt. Dakota Meyer

Medal of Honor (left to right) for Army, Navy/Marine Corps/Coast Guard, Air Force

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- On Thursday, President Barack Obama presented the Medal of Honor to former Marine Dakota Meyer of Greensburg, Ky., according to national media.

Meyer received the honor for saving the lives some 36 Marines, U.S. soldiers and Afghanistan military personnel during an ambush by insurgents in northern Afghanistan. He was 21 years old on Sept. 9, 2009.

Meyer, 23, is the first living Marine to get the honor in nearly four decades, according to reports by McClatchy Newspapers in the Sun Herald. The Medal of Honor is the highest military recognition by the United States government. It is awarded by the president in the name of Congress.

Deputy's Wife Dies in Vehicle Wreck

HANCOCK COUNTY -- Reportedly, the wife of a deputy in Hancock County died today in a one-vehicle wreck on U.S. 43, according to a local television station.

Deputy's wife dies in Mississippi 43 wreck
WLOX TV-13/Friday, September 16, 2011

Brandi Krystal Malley, 34, is said to have died around 12:30 a.m. after her vehicle veered off the highway and overturning, according to the station's website.

Guard Unit Captain Remembers 9/11 Response

PASCAGOULA -- Their 9/11 ceremony early Sunday morning was short but heartfelt.

"We had a real small ceremony," said Capt. Tim Moseley. "We raised (the flag) and then lowered it to half staff."

Moseley said the 7:30 a.m. flag raising included all 92 members of the 859th Engineering Company at the National Guard Armory on Shortcut Road, part of the 890th Engineering Battalion.

"We had our first formation and then we lowered the flag. That was pretty much it," he said.

REMEMBERING 9/11
Liberty and diversity: Chorale performs 9/11 tribute
The Mississippi Press/Sunday, September 12, 2011

The flag was lowered to half-staff in honor and remembrance of the nearly 3,000 victims of the terrorists attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, which was 10 years ago Sunday.

This year's anniversary came on a day when the guard members had drill duty, but they wanted to pay their respects to the civilians, firefighters, military personnel, and others who lost their lives or helped save lives during the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and on Flight 93 that crashed in Shanksville, Pa.

Moseley, like most everyone in America, remembers where he was when he heard about the attacks, beginning with American Airlines Flight 11 into the north tower of the WTC at 8:46 a.m. , then United Airlines Flight 175 into the south tower about 15 minutes later. American Airlines Flight 77 was crashed into the Pentagon at 9:03 a.m.

United Airlines Flight 93 crashed into a field in Shanksville, Penn., after passengers stormed the cockpit to take back the hijacked airplane. The flight had been delayed and passengers had learned of the earlier hijackings from family members who had reached them by cell phones.

"I knew when it happened we would deploy somewhere," said Moseley, who was a platoon leader at the time. "I knew immediately there would be a response."

He said he was glad and proud that the U.S. did respond quickly and went into Iraq.

Nation marks 9/11 anniversary with
SOLEMN CEREMONIES
The Sun Herald/Monday, September 12, 2011

Military Readies for 9/11 Memories, Security

Peaceful reflections at Biloxi National Cemetery as military readies for 9/11 events that honor civilians, emergency personnel and military victims and heroes of 2001.

Officer Jeremy Henwood's Last Act of Kindness Discovered

SAN DIEGO -- A video has been discovered that showed the last act of kindness done by Officer Jeremy Hinwood, just moments before he was killed by a thief, according to America Online News.

Apparently, Henwood had gone into a McDonalds and while purchasing his food, he was approached by a teenager who asked him for a dime to help buy three cookies. Henwood bought the cookies for 13-year-old Davion Tinsley.

According to AOL and NBC San Diego, Henwood had recently returned from duty in Afghanistan. He was a Marine who also had served two tours in Iraq.

Henwood was sitting in his vehicle when he was shot allegedly by 23-year-old Dejon Marquee White.

Family, Friends Mourn Officer Jeremy Henwood

NCBC Gets New Commander

GULFPORT -- On July 8, Capt. Rick Burgess took on duties of new commanding officer of the Naval Construction Battalion Center and 20th Seabee Readiness Group.

Naval Construction Battalion Center Changing Hands
Local 15 TV

Burgess took over from Capt. Lou Cariello.

Both officers are with the Civil Engineer Corps.


Change of Command at NCBC
The Sun Herald/July 9, 2011

Chaplain Kilmurray Receives Bronze Star

BILOXI -- Lt. Col. Fintan Kilmurray, a chaplain, has received the Bronze Star for outstanding work with the Mississippi Army National Guard's 184th.

Read full story at The Sun Herald

Moss Point Firefighters Train in Heat to Fight Fires

MOSS POINT -- Check out this broadcast from WLOX TV 13 showing Moss Point firefighters training in 90-degree heat to keep themselves in shape to fight fires during the summer months.

Photograph from wlox.com.

Americans Celebrate National Flag Day, Week

Barak Obama, Bill Richardson and Hillary Clinton during the national anthem at an Iowa campaign stop in 2007.

GULF COAST -- American Legion posts in Harrison County and Gulfport conducted ceremonies today in observation of Flag Day.

Several cities in Jackson County did not conduct observances, which may be held during National Flag Week, June 12 -18.

According to wikipedia.com, one of the longest-running Flag Day parades is held in Quincy, Mass., which begin in 1952, celebrating its 59th year in 2010, making 2011 the 60th year. The 59th Annual Appleton Wisconsin 2009 Flag Day Parade featured the U.S. Navy. The largest Flag Day parade is held in Troy, N.Y., which bases is parade on the Quincy parade and typically draws 50,00 spectators.

A press release from the White House included the presidential proclamation for Flag Day and National Flag Week.

"On June 14, 1777, the Second Continental Congress adopted a flag with 13 stripes and 13 stars to represent our nation, one star for each of our founding colonies. The stars were set upon a blue field, in the words of the Congress's resolution, "representing a new constellation" in the night sky. What was then a fledgling democracy has flourished and expanded, as we constantly strive toward a more perfect Union.

"Through the successes and struggles we have faced the American flag as been ever present. It has flown on our ships and military bases around the world as we continue to defend liberty and democracy abroad. It has been raised in yards and on porches across America on days of celebration, and as a sign of our shared heritage. And it is lowered on days of remembrance to honor fallen service members and public servants: or when tragedy strikes and we join together in mourning. Our flag is the mark of one country, one people, uniting under one banner.

Stony Hill School, in Waubeka, Wis., is site of the first formal observance of Flag Day.

When the American flag soars, so too does our Nation and the ideals it stands for. We remain committed to defending the liberties and freedoms it represents, and we give special thanks to the members of the Armed Forces who wear our flag proudly. On Flag Day, and during National Flag Week, we celebrate the powerful beacon of hope that our flag has become for us all, and for people around the world.

To commemorate the adoption of our flag, the Congress, by joint resolution approved August 3, 1949, as amended (63 Stat. 492), designated June 14 of each year as "Flag Day" and requested that the President issue an annual proclamation calling for its observance and for the display of the flag of the United States on all Federal Government buildings. The Congress also requested, by joint resolution approved June 8, 1966, as amended (80 Stat. 194), that the President annually issue a proclamaton designating the week in which June 14 occurs as "National Flag Week" and call upon citizens of the United States to display the flag during that week.

NOW, THEREFORE, I BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim June 14, 2011, as Flag Day and the week beginning June 12, 2011, as National Flag Week. I direct the appropriate officials to display the flag on all Federal Government buildings during that week,

and I urge all Americans to observe Flag Day and National Flag Week by displaying the flag. I also call up the people of the United States to observe with pride and all due ceremony those days from Flag Day through Independence Day, also set aside by the Congress (89 Stat. 211), as a time to honor America, to celebrate our heritage in public gatherings and activities, and to publicly recite the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this tenth day of June, in the year of our Lord two thousand eleven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-fifth."

BARACK OBAMA

Veteran Rodgers, Family Surprised by WWII Attention

Bilbo Rodgers of Pascagoula (Meet the Heroes)

PASCAGOULA -- Bilbo Rodgers has a second invitation from the Pascagoula Rotary Club to attend their meeting on Wednesday, June 8, at the Grand Magnolia Ballroom.

The invitation is part of the public attention that has been bestowed upon Rodgers, a veteran of World War II, since he and 83 other veterans made the inaugural trip of the Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight on May 11.

Pascagoula Veteran Recalls D-Day Experience

The Mississippi Press/June 06, 2011

He feels "pretty good" about all the attention, though he and his family have been surprised my his seeming celebrity status now.

"I've done got to be real popular," he said this morning. "They're excited about it. They think it's real good."

Though he didn't know it until the next day, the greeting between his daughter, Julia Holmes, and himself at the Gulfport-Biloxi Regional Airport, where Gulf Coast residents had gathered to welcome home the Honor Flight veterans, was the front page photograph in The Mississippi Press.

"That flight to Washington really brought it to the light," he said. "I didn't think all of this would come of it."

At the WWII memorial, Rodgers was among three South Mississippi veterans who took part in the laying of a wreath.

Holmes, Rodgers' eldest daughter and child, also is excited about the attention he's received lately, he said.

Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight

Rodgers said all of the World War II veterans were treated to a number of recognitions by area businesses and community groups before they made the May 11 trip to the nation's capital to tour the WWII monument built in their honor. The veterans also toured memorials for soldiers who served in the Korean and Vietnam wars, and they were part of a sight tour of the Lincoln Memorial.

"Before I went on the flight Ingalls gave us a big dinner for the World War II veterans," he said.

During April, Beau Rivage casino provided a tribute that included a show. Veterans were allowed to bring another guest, said Rodgers. "I carried Aubrey Williams and another guy from our area."

Petty Officer 1st Class Philomena Roberts

D'IBERVILLE -- Petty officer 1st Class Philomena Roberts was found dead in her home on June 1, 2011.

Media reported that Roberts had a gunshot wound to the chest.

(Update: On June 29, D'Iberville police charged Roberts' husband, Troy Eugene Roberts, with murder in her death. He was being held in jail on an unrelated charge -- a felon in possession of a concealed weapon, reported as a switchblade -- since he reported her death, saying that they'd been out drinking, but he'd taken home before leaving again, and found her dead when he returned. See the June 30, 2011, issue of The Sun Herald.)

According to the newspaper, Philomena Roberts was from Arkansas, had a son, and had been in the Navy for 14 years. The petty officer was a logistics specialist with the Seabee Readiness Group in Gulfport.

She had served on the USS Merimack and USS Nimitz. She also had been stationed in England at the Naval Air Facility Mildenhall and in Virginia at the Center for Combat Learning Site and the Naval Special Warfare Group. Roberts was a member of Little Rock Baptist Church in Gulfport, and a survivor of breast cancer.

Neighbors Enjoy Sounds By Sea Tribute

PASCAGOULA -- Ginger L. and her husband live close enough to Pascagoula's beach that they could sit on their porch and listen to the patriotic music wafting across the air from the annual Sounds by the Sea.

Songs of Freedom: People Flock to Hear Sounds by the Sea
The Mississippi Press/May 30, 2011

Still, the couple walked to the Memorial Day tribute held Sunday at Beach Park, where about 3,000 residents from across Jackson County and other cities in South Mississippi enjoyed the patriotic sounds honoring fallen members of the military.

That number was down from the estimated 5,000 yearly attendants, but enthusism was no less among the crowd that waved miniature flags and clapped in time to familiar songs in honor of each military branch.

Music, Fireworks Over Pascagoula Beach
The Sun Herald/May 30, 2011

"We pretty much come every year," she said. "Some years I've missed. We live close enough that we can walk. We like to bring the grandbaby."

Ginger said that she's been busy those years that they didn't attend the holiday concert, though they've never stayed at home to listen to the beachside event. However, many of her neighbors make the symphony concert a home event.

"When we were walking here some of our neigbhbors were sitting in lawn chairs," said Ginger. "While I was walking here it was loud and clear."

Thousands Gather in Pascagoula for Sounds by the Sea
WLOX-TV 13/May 29, 2011

The Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra sponsors Sounds by the Sea each year, 2011 marking the ninth year. Each year the Freedom Chorus of Pascagoula opens the concert held in Jackson County. David Knowles led the group.

This year, the pre-concert on Saturday was provided by the South Mississippi Gulf Coast Chorale and Coastal Vibrations from the Jeff Davis Campus of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. The concert was held at Centennial Plaza, former Veterans Administrations property.

During the concert, director John Strickler said that some people think of Memorial Day as just part of a three-day weekend. He said the Navy Hymn and Siempre Fidelis would inspire help residents to remember those who have sacrificed their lives for America.

"I think it's good for the families that did lose someone," said Ginger of Sounds by the Sea. "For the families it shows that they didn't just die in vain. Their memories live on forever."

Sounds By Sea Set May 29 at Beach Park

The Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra has scheduled its annual Memorial Day salute to the military this Saturday and Sunday.

The Jackson County segment of Sounds by the Sea 2011 has been set for Sunday, May 29, at Pascagoula Beach Park.

The pre-concert at 7 p.m. features the Freedom Chorus before the symphony orchestra begins its tribute at 7:30 p.m.

In Harrison County, the concert takes place Saturday, May 28, at the Centennial Plaza, which is the old Veterans Administration property in Gulfport.

In Gulfport, the pre-concerts begin at 6:30 p.m. with music from the South Mississippi Gulf Coast Civic Chorale; at 7 p.m. the Coastal Vibrations from the Jefferson Davis Campus of Mississippi Gulf Coast Commmunity College will provide their military tribute before the symphony ; 7 p.m. and symphonic music starts at 7:30 p.m.

Gates open at 6 p.m. at both Sounds by the Sea.

The pre-concerts and orchestra performances pay tribute to the memory and service of personnel in all American military branches, and are part of celebrations for the Memorial Day Weekend that begins Friday, May 27, and ends Monday, May 30, which happens to the actual date of the holiday.

The events are free to the public, but VIP seating is available for $300 per table, which seat eight people. The tables are limited. Interested residents should contact the Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra at 228-896-4276.

According to information from the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce in Pascagoula, the Sounds by the Sea at the Beach Park will be broadcast live on AM 1580 WPMO and AM 1440 WVVG. The concert may be heard at http://www.talkradio1580.com/ live, or residents may use the link http://talkradio1580.com/2601.html.

Users of iPhones may go to the App Store and download the free app listed as Talk Radio 1580. Blackberry and Android users may download the free Tunein.com radio app and search for WPMO. The App Store will have Tune IN Radio.

Downtime before Next Honor Flight

NOTE FROM JEN:

David Comstock has tickets for the Gulfport Kiwanis Club Crab Boil, which is Saturday, May 21, starting at 6 - 10 p.m. at Bayou Bluff Tennis Club.

Tickets are$15.

This would be a good time for us to sit back and relax after our first flight.

New Police Chief in Moss Point

MOSS POINT --Former police investigator Keith Davis was sworn in as Moss Point's new police chief during a ceremony Monday, May 16, at Pelican Landing Conference Center, according to media reports

Davis, 40, came to Moss Point from the D'Iberville Police Department, where he had been captain of the Criminal Investigations Division. He has 18 years of experience in law enforcement.

Davis replaced former Police Chief Shelia Smallman, who became Moss Point's top officer in 2008. She made history when she became the first female police chief in Moss Point, and only the second female to officially hold the office of police chief within the six counties that make up South Mississippi.

Smallman was dismissed in March after the Moss Point Board of Aldermen expressed a lack of confidence in her leadership of the police department. Deputy Chief Bobby Johnson served as interim chief until Davis was hired.

Reports from The Mississippi Press said that Davis began his law enforcement career with Gulfport Police Department, where he became sergeant during his seven years there. He worked as police chief at the Perkinston Campus of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College.

He earned a bachelor's degree in justice adminstration from University of Southern Mississippi, and is a graduate of Mississippi Law Enforcement Command College at University of Mississippi. He also is a graduate of the Federal Bureau of Investigations National Academy.

The Sun Herald reported that Davis has pledged to build trust within the police department and among residents in Moss Point. The Mississippi Press reported that Davis calls himself a "man of faith." He said he has faith in faith in God, in the city's police personnel and city leadership, and faith in his years of police training.

ALL ABOARD! : Veterans Off to Washington

Kim Foster, president of Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight, directs veteran J.B. Redmond at Joppa Shrine Center. (Photo: Harlan Kirgan/The Mississippi Press)

WOOLMARKET -- THE BIG DAY IS HERE!

www.mgchonorflight.org

Catch today's printed Mississippi Press and online updates for first Honor Flight for WWII vets.

Honor Flight: Last Call for the Big Day

Bilbo Rodgers of Pascagoula, James Beasley of Natchez, and Henry Little of Pascagoula are among the WWII veterans making the first Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight. (Photos from Meet the Heroes)

SOUTH MISSISSIPPI -- Today marks the final day before nearly 90 veterans from World War II will board a flight to Washington, D.C., where they will view the monument built in their honor as well as several other war tributes.

The first Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight begins about 5 a.m. at the Joppa Shrine Center in Woolmarket, where members will load buses to Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport for the trip to the nation's capital.

MEET THE HEROES: A tribute and history of the veterans vailable at The Mississippi Press.

The veterans are expected to receive a coastwide send-off in the morning and a hearty Welcome Back at the airport when they return Wednesday night about 7:30 p.m.

ROTC students and various other military groups, cheerleaders, high school bands and other students, businesses, residents and coast government officials are expected to number about 3,000, according to Wayne Lennep of Moss Point, vice president and spokesman for Honor Flight.

Soldier Dancing the Carlton

In the midst of war, some soldiers still find time to laugh and play.


Take a look at this soldier who found time to do The Carlton while rockets flew overhead.
Humorous. The joy of life on top of an armored tank.

Ironic yet oddly appropriate to laugh while handling stress and hardship ... as 'good soldiers' do.








Some other videos:



Israelis in Hebron
A touching tribute:
A Soldier: For My Wife

Military in Pakistan Kill Osama bin Laden

PAKISTAN -- U.S. military personnel and citizens across the country have been celebrating since late last night at the news that Navy SEALs in Pakistan have killed Osama bin Laden.

President Barack Obama made the announcement shortly before midnight, also calling former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush to let them know what happened.

Bin Laden, founder of the terrorist group Al-Qaida, has been responsible for numerous attacks on American interests across the world dating back to the early 1990s.

American Rejoice Over the Death of bin Laden
NBC's Today Show Monday, May 02, 2011

Bin Laden had been the target of a U.S. military death hunt for the past 10 years, since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists attacks that killed more than 3,000 people in attacks at the World Trade Center in New York, at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and Flight 93 in a Pennsylvania field.

At the time, President Bush had vowed that the U.S. would hunt for bin Laden until justice was served. He made a similar statement after learning of bin Laden's death.

Media reports said bin Laden was killed while living in a mansion in Abbotabad, a town about 35 miles north of Islamabad, capital of Pakistan. American forces captured his body before he was buried at sea with 24 hours after his death, according to Islamic law.

According to the Today Show, a decision was being made about how to show the body for proof that bin Laden is dead.

U.S. Forces Hunt Down, Kill Osama bin Laden
NBC's Today Show Monday, May 02, 2011

Legion Post 1992 to Hold Cruise-In

GAUTIER -- A cruise-in will be held Saturday, April 30, at American Legion Post 1992 to help support the Honor Flight scheduled for May 11.

Jen Walton said that chicken plates will be served from noon until 3 p.m. The cruise-in takes place from 4 to 8 p.m.

Keesler Reopens Gate at White Avenue

BILOXI -- The White Avenue gate to Keesler Air Force Base has reopened, authorities said.

The entrance, two blocks north of the beach, was closed Friday because of a waterleak.

Motorists were rerouted to Bayview Drive and Pass Road gates instead. The leadk has been fised, according to information on Keesler website. -- By Donna Harris, Sun Herald, April, 24, 2011

5 Years of Memories for Patrolman Byrd

HURLEY -- This Sunday, March 27, will mark five years of memories of the too-short but full life of Patrolman Terry Micheal Byrd.

The Pascagoula motorcycle officer was killed in 2006 when he tried to avoid a vehicle waiting to turn in traffic and instead was thrown into the path of an oncoming dump truck. The truck subsequently ran over Byrd during the traffic accident on Chicot Road.

April 11 will mark the birthday of the young officer, who was 27 years old when he died while on his way to visit a sister and her newborn son. He was born in 1979.

Hog Wild Party Set for National Guard

LUCEDALE -- This coming weekend will bring on a Hog Wild Homecoming for the 287th Engineering Company when the National Guard unit returns from a year-long tour in Afghanistan.

City officials said Saturday's event will take place at Lucedale City Park from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., according to media report

The 130-member unit left the city and their families in March 2010, and will return to a feast of barbecue, ceremony, and gathering of family, city officials and residents.


Lucedale National Guard Unit's Return to be Marked with 'Hog Wild' Party
March 01, 2011 The Mississippi Press

Honor Flight Meets with Volunteers in OS

OCEAN SPRINGS -- Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight organizers have about three weeks to gather final monies needed to send some 90 veterans to the nation's capitol May 11.

The call for more volunteers garnered about 30 residents at a meeting Wednesday night in this city, according to reporter Harlan Kirgan at www.gulflive.com/themississippipress.

"Basically what this meeting is about is fundraising," said MGC Honor Flight President Kim Foster. "all the money to be raised needs to be raised by April 1."

She said $15,000 has been collected in the last two weeks.

Honor Flight Ramps Up Fundraising

Gulfport Officially Opens Robert Curry Public Safety Center

GULFPORT -- While police staff already have moved in the new Robert J. Curry Public Safety Center, personnel with the city's court system will soon follow suit, according to local media.

On Thursday, Gulfport officials and employees and the public turned out for the official opening of the $22 million building in downtown. Police personnel moved in during December last year, according to reporter Anita Lee at http://www.sunherald.com/

"We're finally home," a beaming police chief, Alan Weatherford, said, "and we're in a state-of-the-art facility that was built for law enforcement."

City Celebrates New Home for Police, Courts @ sunherald.com

Gulfport Opens New Safety Center, Honors Fallen Police Officers @ wlox.com

The building was named for former police officer Robert Curry, who was killed in 2008 while helping to escort a funeral procession on U.S. 49. Curry's mother, Dorothy Gibson, attended the dedication of the new public safety center, which was built to house police and court system staff.

"He will always be sadly missed," said Gibson at wlox.com. "We thank God for giving us Rob for just a little while."

See photographs of the dedication ceremony at sunherald.com

Among the more than 200 people who attended the ceremony for the Robert J. Curry Public Safety Center were his wife, Leslee Curry, and their two children, teenager Krysten and grade schooler Trevor.

"I love it. It's very good for all the officers and for the whole department. It's a good reminder of Rob, and to keep his memory alive," said Leslee Curry to wlox.com reporter Elizabeth Vowell.

According to the news reports, the building includes rooms named for seven other Gulfport police officers who died in the line of duty. As well, a monument to the fallen officers stands outside the building.

Sgt. 1st Class Sean Cooley Remembered

OCEAN SPRINGS -- Feb. 3 will mark six years that Sgt. 1st Class Sean Michael Cooley lost his life while fighting in Northern Babil Province, Iraq.

Cooley died during 2005 when his vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device.

An Ocean Springs resident, Cooley was assigned to the 150th Engineer Battalion, 155th Armor Brigade of the Mississippi National Guard in Lucedale.

See other information at FallenHeroesMemorial and MilitaryTimes.

http://www.fallenheroesmemorial.com/

http://www.militarytimes.com/

Cooley was the 21st soldier with Mississippi ties to die in the war on terror, and the fifth Mississippi National Guardsman to die in Iraq, according to MilitaryTimes.

Michael Green Memorial 2011

GAUTIER -- January 07 this year marks three years for remembrance of Major Michael Lee Green, who was killed in Afghanistan during 2008.

Born April 6, 1971, Green was 36 years old when he died after a roadside bomb detonated near his vehicle. Ironically, Green was training militia recruits how to detect and dispose of roadside bombs. Although he was serving in Afghanistan, he was stationed in Germany.

Green was returned to a hero's welcome and funeral services at First Baptist Church of Gautier, where residents in South Mississippi lined the roadway from his native city to the U.S. National Cemetery in Biloxi.

The Patriot Guard Riders helped with ceremonies at the funeral home in Pascagoula, church and funeral route to Biloxi.

See pictures from the day of the service at http://www.flounderwear.com/.

Read the official obituary at O'Bryant-O'Keefe Funeral Home in Pascagoula (4811 Telephone Road, Pascagoula.)

(http://www.obryantokeefe.com/)