Sixteen local Korean War veterans were recognized Monday at a Memorial Day service on the Morristown Green, where a native of South Korea expressed thanks to American forces for saving thousands of Korean lives and enabling South Korea to flourish today.
“We focus on humanitarian help by the U.S. military,” said keynote speaker Jaechul Ahn, founder and president of The World Peace Freedom United, a nongovernmental organization.
The ceremony featured a performance by a South Korean dance group, and the reading of names of 16 Greater Morristown veterans who have died since 2021.
The Morristown High School Marching Colonials played the national anthem, a rifle squad from the Morristown Amory fired a 21-gun salute, and buglers from the high school blew Taps.
Earlier on Monday, services were held at area cemeteries, monuments and memorial parks. After a ceremony at the Morris Township municipal building, participants paraded to the Green, where Township Mayor Mark Gyorfy, Morristown Council President Sandi Mayer and Vice President Nathan Umbriac gave brief speeches.
Gyorfy reflected on the pain of families whose loved ones remain missing in action.
“They never had the opportunity to be provided closure with a burial,” he said.
Mayer noted how World War II veterans are passing on, and urged the public to listen to their stories.
A couple of Korean War vets needed walkers to join their comrades when Master of Ceremonies James Cavanaugh invited them to the podium for acknowledgment.
Video playlist by Bill Lescohier for MorristownGreen.com; click top right icon to toggle through clips:
Ahn, now a resident of Chatham, brought photos of the Korean War, which spanned 1950-53. His display of pictures and flags has been seen at more than 5,200 events across the United States, South Korea and Taiwan.
Ahn’s latest project, Sailing for Life, is a musical about Merchant Marine Capt. Leonard LaRue and the SS Meredith Victory, which evacuated more than 14,000 refugees from North Korea during the war.
Monday’s ceremonies were organized by the Memorial & Veterans Day Association of Morristown and Morris Township, which includes members of Morristown American Legion Post 59 and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3401 in Morris Plains.
Video by Lee Goldberg: Memorial Day 2023 Parade:
Greater Morristown living Korean War veterans honored on Monday:
Roger Anderson, Glen Coutts, Raymond Debiasse, William Donovan, Richard Dugan, Genereso Giesullo, John Hunt, George Kaufman, John Loia, Anthony Perruso Sr., Patrick Simone, Howard Smith, Gerhard Vienna, Thomas Voorhees, Joseph Zarnick and Pierson Little.
Local veterans who have passed away since last Memorial Day include Thomas Connolly and William Callahan. Both served in the Army during the Vietnam era.
Morristown Green photographer Bill Lescohier contributed to this report.