Two hundred forty years ago on April 19, the Minutemen began our nine year fight for freedom at Concord, Lexington and the siege of Boston. The second Revolutionary War lasted from June 18, 1812 until December 24, 1814.
From April 1846, to February 1848, the U.S. military fought the Mexican War. At 4:30 a.m. on April 12, 1861 the bombardment of Fort Sumter began. One hundred fifty years ago on April 9, 1865 the Civil War ended with General Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Courthouse, VA.
The 111 day Spanish-American War began on April 25, 1898 and was fought in both the Atlantic and Pacific regions. On April 6, 1917 the U.S. declared war on Germany. The first U.S. troops arrived in France on June 25. In August, U.S. Marines landed in Cuba to counter pro-German insurgents. On November 11, 1918 the world celebrated the Armistice of the “War to end all Wars.”
At sunrise on December 6, 1941 the Second World War spread across the globe. Seventy years ago on May 8, the world celebrated the end of fighting in Europe. A second worldwide celebration occurred on August 15 when Japan formally surrendered aboard the USS Missouri.
North Korea invaded South Korea on June 25, 1950 and the U.S. was again at war to defend freedom. Three years and one month later on July 27, 1953 a truce was signed creating the Korean DMZ.
In May 1961 the first U.S. Special Forces advisors were deployed to Vietnam. On March 29, 1973 most U.S. forces departed Vietnam. One thousand U.S. and 7,000 Vietnamese were evacuated from Vietnam on April 29, 1975 as Saigon fell to the North Vietnamese and the Vietnam War officially ended.
The First Gulf War began on August 2, 1990 and ended six months later. From March 19 to May 1, 2003 the U.S. military fought in the Second Gulf War. Operation Enduring Freedom (War on Terrorism) officially began in Afghanistan on October 7, 2001 and has since involved deployment of U.S. troops to the Philippines, Africa, Trans Sahara, Caribbean, Central America, Kyrgyzstan, Middle East and is still underway.
On Memorial Day, May 25, we will honor all men and women who have served the United States since the Revolutionary War. We will especially remember the 1,343,900 who made the ultimate sacrifice, the 1,529,300 who were wounded and the 38,159 who remain missing in action.
The Veterans Park Ceremony will begin at 10:00 a.m. and last 30 minutes. We will fly a U.S. flag over the Veterans Park that flew over a WWII Navy transport that carried troops between the U.S. and Europe.
Following the ceremony, military items, art, photos and Veteran memorabilia will be on display in the clubhouse until 1:00 p.m. If you wish to display an item that honors your service or a family member’s service, please pick up a registration form at the Tribute Book stand in the clubhouse or email [email protected].