Memorial Day May 23, 2009 

Good afternoon. Pastor Dibble, Selectman Nick Arguimbau, veterans,
ladies and gentlemen, and especially our school children. I would like
to thank the Memorial Day Committee for giving me the opportunity to
speak to you today.

Memorial Day - why do we have Memorial Day - what is its purpose? We
think of Memorial Day as the first day of summer activities, as a time
for families to get together for a cook-out, a day away from work, or a
day to just hang out - but - Memorial Day is much more than that.
Memorial Day is the day set aside to honor our men and women who have
served in our armed forces - Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast
Guard, and Merchant Marines. Men and women who have given of themselves
to preserve our freedom and our way of life.

It was brought to my attention by Barbara Walker that many of our young
people are unaware of the significance of Memorial Day and of the
sacrifices of men and women who have served our country in the military
and, particularly from a local point of view, they did not know the
significance of the monument at the ball field or why the field is named
Fellows Memorial Field.

Memorial Day doesn't seem to touch the young people of today as it did
earlier generations. When I was in school - your age - yes, I really was
your age once - World War II was still fresh in our minds and the entire
school participated in our Memorial Day service. If you look at our
Honor Roll - the monument located by the library - you will see the
names of men and women who entered the armed services from Warwick.
There are many other people in Warwick who have also served their
country in the armed forces who are not listed on the Honor Roll because
they entered the service from a town other than Warwick.

During World War II, the population of Warwick was approximately 450
(including men, women, and children) and if you count the names on the
Honor Roll of those who served in World War II, you will find the names
of 57 men and women. In other words, if there were 100 children in town
(we know there were 87 young people in grades 1-12), approximately one
out of every six adults was in the military. This meant that nearly
every household was affected by the war - either they or their neighbor
sent someone off to defend our freedom.

I can tell you how our family was affected. Three of our siblings
entered the service. Our brother, Archie was a member of the Army
National Guard, was activated, and sent to Germany, was captured, and
spent one year in a prisoner of war camp, returning home in 1946. Our
sister, Virginia enlisted in the Marine Corps, was stationed in
California, and was a member of the Marine Corps Marching Band. Our
brother, Winnie - the one whose memorial you see at the ball field and
for whom the field is named was drafted into the Army in 1942. Winnie
was a young fella like all young boys of that era. He grew up here, went
to the school across the street, went to and graduated from New Salem
Academy in 1941. He played basketball and some baseball. He did the
things young men do. He loved to play tricks on his sisters and
brothers. He enjoyed life. He enjoyed doing things with his good friend,
Charlie Brown. His great desire was to be a dairy farmer. He bought a
small herd of Guernsey cows to start his own herd for his farm. He was
drafted and entered the Army in 1942. After basic training, he was sent
to Germany along with his fellow troops. He must have had a very
positive influence on his fellow soldiers. In a letter from his sergeant
written to our mother, the sergeant said that Winnie liked to keep his
comrades laughing, helping to keep up their spirits. He was a
happy-go-lucky type of guy looking forward to returning home and
fulfilling his dreams. --- He was wounded on September 16th, 1944 and
died of those wounds the following day, September 17th.

The Town wanted to express their honor to him in a way that would be
lasting and decided to rebuild, expand, and dedicate the ball field to
his memory. Thus, the monument and the Fellows Memorial Field that we
enjoy today. Winnie, the only Warwick resident to die in World War II,
is one of thousands and thousands of men and women who have given the
ultimate sacrifice - dying - for their country. We just sang our
national anthem with the words The Land of the Free and the Home of the
Brave - but it could just as easily be The Land of the Free Because of
the Brave. We always hope for peace and that none of our children will
ever need to go to war.

In closing I would like to read some lines from the song Legacy by John
McDermott.

And did you think that we'd forget you
And that your memory would soon fade 
That the passing years would rob you 
Of your place in history's page 
Did you think we'd scorn your sacrifice 
And find no honour in the debt 
When your lives paid our freedom's price
How then could we forget? 
And that's their greatest Legacy
The freedom we hold yet 
We never can repay them 
And we never should forget.