On a crisp, sunny, autumn afternoon dozens of people -- from young families with small children to a World War II veteran of 99 years -- gathered downtown for the dedication of the new Veterans Memorial. There were two veterans in wheelchairs, some with canes, some in camouflage, but all with hearts full of patriotism, pride and devotion.
Gray granite stones emblazoned with 142 names of veterans stood sentinel in a semicircle as part of the new memorial. Children ran and played nearby; families visited; elder veterans sat. The names were placed on the stones for $100 each by anyone who wanted to submit a veteran's name. Names may still be added.
Beginning with the Pledge of Allegiance, the national anthem and an invocation offered by Hillary Booth, the dedication evoked emotional responses.
Mayor Jackie Crabtree commended police, firefighters and emergency services personnel, saying "You're serving right along with everybody else. Thank you for being here today."
Jerry Burton, commander of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 8109, choked back tears as he explained the inception of the memorial.
"Two years ago, on Veterans Day, I was asked to go to Mrs. Bruhin's class where about 20 young ladies presented me with a jar full of quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies -- they had $61.91 and they'd given it to the VFW for this memorial."
Anya Bruhin was the art teacher at Pea Ridge Middle School.
"I went to our next meeting and said it was time for our members to get off their duff and start raising money for this memorial. What you see here today is a little over $35,000 in front of you. I'm extremely proud of the community," Burton said.
Guest speaker Mark Howell was a 1981 Pea Ridge High School graduate who joined the Army in 1982 and rose through the ranks to become a chief warrant officer and the personal security officer to Gen. David Petraeus.
"The first time I flew on an airplane was to basic training in Fort Sill, Oklahoma," Howell recalled of his entrance into the military and reminiscing about his great-great-grandfather who joined the Army at a "homemade induction site" and "probably rode a horse to get there."
"Here a couple of days ago, we had an election," Howell said Saturday, just days after the presidential election of Nov. 8. "Some said an election of a divided nation, but no where else, and believe me, after a couple of times around the world, there is no where else ... you could have had an election like this. In those countries that I'm talking about, there is no such thing as an election like this, even if they have an election, the outcome is already decided.
"Democracy, freedom is a hard task and not everybody wants to perform that task."
Howell said the division within the presidential campaign and election might now have brought out the best in Americans, but that Americans are not "here for a government, we're here for a country."
"For the past 240 years, the names that are on these markers have protected those freedoms and allowed us to do the things that we're here to do."
"I grew up in a volunteer force -- everybody there wants to be there, ... but after 31 years of service, we realize we may be stronger with a volunteer force, but we would never have made it as a volunteer service without those who stepped up and did what they had to do as Americans," Howell said. "They deserve a serious round of applause."
He said every veteran has a different story about how and why they entered the military, but each realizes they are "part of something greater than themselves."
He said that as a young man from Pea Ridge, his encounter with the military helped him to "realize the United States Army was a whole lot bigger than anything I'd ever been involved in. It was an awakening, but it was one that grew through those 31 years."
"The veterans here today probably had their first encounters with true fear and true courage" during their service, Howell said, speaking to the audience that included World War II, Vietnam War and Korean War veterans.
"Many of the veterans who are here today also belong to another club: General David Petraeus called it the Brotherhood of the Close Fight ... and that's where relationships mean so much different than they might have when you left home. Family is much more than blood.
"There are times that person on your left and right at certain points are your only compass, that's why you're there. There are other realizations that take place... and some of those experiences are just seeing how one man can be so cruel to one another in the name of a god or a flag or an idea," Howell said.
"This has worked for 240 years because those names on that wall come from folks that know there will be another 240 years of names to go on that wall... but it still is going to take those folks for this to work... some say we are at a point that we don't know if we have those people we can call on if we have to to protect this nation and this freedom.
"I do believe that those people that will be needed for those tasks will come come from places just like this -- places like Pea Ridge, Arkansas, that still believe in raising their youth to respect that flag and also respect what that flag means and those who paid a price for that flag. And for those who are in the crowd today who may be considering (joining the military) ... you are the folks we will look to to pass that on.
"To paraphrase Ronald Reagan who said freedom is only just only generation away from extinction: If we do not have those who will follow in our footsteps, it won't continue," Howell said. "Freedom is not passed through the bloodstream. It has to nurtured, to be educated and passed on to those who follow.
"Coming together today in remembering what those people on that wall have done their best to provide let's us know that in 240 years we will be the same as we are today. Those names will be accompanied by other names. There will be names of those who did it, not for the stock options, not for the glory, and definitely not for the pay, but because they're carrying on a tradition and freedom, respect, love and being part of something greater than something themselves.
"I think that the VFW post here has done a tremendous job!
"Jerry, coming from the Navy, he understands, that something like this does not get done unless someone raises their hand and says, send me," Howell said.
In Isaiah 6:8, it says: "... I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: 'Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?' Then I said, 'Here am I! Send me.'"
"We've always got to have those folks that are ready to say, 'here am I, send me.' I believe those folks will come from places just like this -- right here in Pea Ridge, Arkansas. I'm so proud to call this my home. God bless you all, God bless my country and God bless Pea Ridge."
Community on 11/16/2016