Veteran (베테랑) - Trailer - korean action, 2015
Crowds gathered to celebrate Veterans Day at the World War II memorial in Washington D.C. Nikita Mandhani, USA TODAY
Former U.S. Sen. Bob Dole, a veteran of World War Two, attends a Veterans Day ceremony at the World War Two Memorial on Nov. 11, 2016 in Washington, D.C.(Photo: Win McNamee, Getty Images)
WASHINGTON Stories of bravery and service marked the gathering of a small ensemble of World War II veterans Friday, as the annualVeterans Day ceremonyfocused on remembering the ever-dwindlinggroup who fought more than 70 years ago.
William Tippins, a prisoner of war for 18 months, traveled back to Germany after the war endedto find the nurse who saved his life by sneakinghim food. The pair latermarried.
Robert Reid, who served in the South Pacific, one day noticed a ship with the same number his brother Pete was assigned to. After sending a message to the crew asking if they knew him, he received a quick response back: "You"re speaking to him."
Tippins, Reid and 13 otherveteranslistened intently as an announcerread their namesaloud, along with a brief description of their service, at the World War II Memorial on the National Mall.
The servicemen, many now well into their 90s,salutedin front of Old Glory, a special U.S. flag that has traveled the world since 1999, as hundreds of onlookers spent a chilly morning listening to the historic recollections.
The focus on WWII veterans" stories at a ceremony for all who served was intentional: The group that battled in the bloodiest war in U.S. history loses members each year.
"I used to have fun with the guys, you know," Wilfred Bitgood, an Air Force veteran who served in Panama during WWII remembered."You"re down there walking with a pack and a gun and everything, and I"m flying over saying, hi guys! You can"t get along with out me. But wecan"t get along without you either."
As he stood in the memorial in front of the tower representing his home state of Connecticut, Bitgood teared up and reflected about divisions in the country today.
"People don"t know how to get along with one another. Some day they may know, and we"ll get through together without fighting and killing each other," he said. "I had a lot of friends who havebeen killed in wars. I don"t like, but it"s a necessary."
Army veteran Allan Wilford Howerton recalled how a shared sense of purpose brought thecountry together in the face of a monumentaltask."If we were indeed the greatest generation, that unity of universal involvement was its hallmark," he said.
Howerton never expected to see combat, but after his Army Specialized Training Program unit for engineeringat Drexel University was discontinued in April 1944, he and his fellow servicemen answered the call to defend their country. Howerton fought in the Battle of the Bulge and becameone of the only men in his company to survive the war.
"This memorialhas been a magnet for WWII veteransall across the country to come here in our last years andto unlock the vaults of our memories," he said.
With a smile on his face, Norman Lambert, a 93-year-old Army WWII veteran, said coming to the memorial in D.C. on VeteransDay every year always makes him proud."That was probably the highlights of my life, those three years in the Pacificserving my country," he said.
His son Tracy said people can honor WWII veterans every day simply by listening to their memories."I get a new story every day," he said.
Former U.S. Senator Dole, 93,has visitedthe WWII Memorial every Saturdayfor the past five years. On Friday, hethanked all veterans regardless of where and when they served.
"Were all in this together. Itdoesnt make any differenceif you werein combat or not, Vietnam or World War II," he said.
Follow Ryan Miller on Twitter @MILLERdfillmore
US President Barack Obama paid tribute to America"s veterans at a speech in Arlington National Cemetery. Obama is marking his final Veterans Day in office. (Nov. 11) AP
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/2fKjjLC
Source: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2016/11/11/stories-wwii-bravery-highlight-veterans-day-ceremony/93642492/
