Warner Robins holds Veterans Day celebration
"Veterans Day to me is an honor to be with all of these people that have served, and I can be with them together in the same place."
WARNER ROBINS, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Warner Robins celebrated Veterans Day at the Wellston Center in Warner Robins. Mayor LaRhonda Patrick and her team wanted to do something more than just hold a ceremony though.
“I’m just so excited to see all the veterans come out. I’m excited to see the leadership at Robins Air Force Base come to be a part of this with us and to have the Montford Point Marines here… to do their ceremony as part of our ceremony was even better, like icing on the cake for us,” said Mayor Patrick. During the ceremony, several veterans associated with the Montford Point Marines were presented with Congressional Gold Medal bronze replicas. A Congressional Gold Medal was awarded to the group during a ceremony in 2012 in the U.S. Capitol, according to military historian Ron Brewington.
The event started early Friday morning with brief words of thanks and acknowledgment followed by breakfast. The event was supposed to have a parade, but due to poor weather conditions, the parade was cancelled.
However, spirits were still high. William J. Carey, a member of the Warner Robins Veterans Issue Board, was thankful for the celebration. “Veterans Day to me is an honor to be with all of these people that have served, and I can be with them together in the same place,” Carey added. “Due to the parade’s cancellation, the ceremony took place immediately after breakfast.
The mayor and her team gave remarks, and the 35th chapter of the Montford Point Marine Association held a ceremony. Family members of two of the original Montford Point Marines were given Congressional Gold Medal bronze replicas. The Montford Point Marines were the first ever Black Marines in U.S. history and served from 1942-1949.
Tony C. Price is the president for the local chapter and spoke on why the medal was so important for these families. “In 2012, the United States Congress authorized the issuing of the Congressional Gold Medal [in honor of] every Marine that served during that time at Camp Montford Point and sadly to say most of those individuals now, they’re in their nineties, a lot of them have passed away,” Price remarked.
During the medal ceremony, the families of the Marines stood up front to receive a certificate of recognition, a personal letter from President Obama, and the gold medals replicas.
Jerome Stephens is a family member of one of the Montford Marines, and he was thankful to be a part of the festivities.
“I’d like to thank the mayor of Warner Robins, Mayor Patrick, for putting this on and for the comradery for all of the veterans regardless of branch. We’re having a great time here and I think it’s a good thing and I think she’ll continue it for years to come,” Stephens mentioned.
Mayor Patrick hopes next year the city will get to have the parade and add new festivities.
Editor’s Note: We’ve clarified this story to reflect that the Congressional Gold Medal was awarded to the Montford Point Marines collectively and not to individual Marines. Replicas were presented to those mentioned in the story.
