RICHMOND, Va. — Dozens gathered at the Virginia War Memorial on Memorial Day to pay tribute to the nearly 12,000 men and women from the Commonwealth who gave their lives in service to the country.
Maj. Gen. James Ring, Adjutant General of the Virginia National Guard, delivered remarks at the ceremony.
"On this Memorial Day, we come together to reflect on the price of freedom and to pay tribute to those who gave their lives that we may live freely," Ring said. "We will ensure that the memory of their lives and service is never forgotten and remains in our hearts and in our minds and in our nation's remembrance."
As the country's 250th anniversary nears, Gov. Abigail Spanberger reflected on the role Virginia played in it, whether it was the battles that happened in the state or the wars overseas where Virginians served.
"It was here on Virginia soil at Yorktown that General George Washington and his allies forced the British to surrender, ending the Revolutionary War," Spanberger said. "In the Second World War, Virginia sent her sons and daughters to North Africa, to Poland, to the Philippines, and, of course, to Normandy. It was in Normandy that 19 young men from the town of Bedford landed on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 1944 and perished there. Four more from Bedford died in the Normandy campaign."
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Monday's service paid special tribute to four Virginians whose names were added to the memorial walls in the past year: First Lieutenant Carl Livesay and Sergeant Robert Heal, both pilots from World War II; Corporal Theodore Landy from the Korean War; and Staff Sergeant Mark A. Stets Jr. from the Global War on Terrorism.
During the service, the song of each military branch was played, allowing veterans to stand and be recognized — or for others to rise in memory of the fallen.
For Benjamin Hill, it was both.
Hill, a Vietnam veteran who was injured in 1969, stood in honor of U.S. Marine Corps Lance Corporal Walter Ross Jr., who was killed in Vietnam a year later. The two grew up together in Fluvanna County.
"My heart is heavy because everybody didn't make it back like I did. I feel somewhat guilty, actually," Hill said. "I think of that and many others that were in the war, and that didn't make it back at night. I made it back through the grace of God, and a praying mother, I'm standing here, but I feel somewhat because they didn't make it."
As the country marks its 250th anniversary, Hill and Ring urged Americans to renew their commitment to honoring those who came before.
"A veteran, not just an ordinary person, there's someone that sacrificed so that all of us can have a country with peace and freedom," Hill said.
"Let us ensure that their sacrifice was not in vain by holding to the ideals for which they lived and for which they died," Ring said.
Next month, the Virginia War Memorial will continue to honor the nearly 12,000 names on the wall with its annual Hill of Heroes event. Organizers say they are still looking for volunteers to help.
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