Savannah Vietnam Veterans group to hold Memorial Day service at Emmet Park

by Shakuria Smith

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - The Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 671 will host a Memorial Day service later this month in downtown Savannah to honor the men and women who gave their lives in military service.

The Memorial Day ceremony will take place Sunday, May 24, at the Vietnam Memorial in Emmet Park on Bay Street, with music beginning at 5:30 p.m. and the official service starting at 6 p.m.

Organizers say the event is meant to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice and to reflect on the meaning of Memorial Day within the Savannah community.

The guest speaker for this year’s service will be a retired United States Marine Corps four-star general who served as the 30th Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps.

The Vietnam Memorial in Emmet Park features the names of 106 local service members who died during the Vietnam War.

Organizers say the service is an opportunity for the community to come together in remembrance and gratitude for those who gave what President Abraham Lincoln described as “the last full measure of devotion.”

The event is open to the public.