CLEVELAND, Ga. – They don’t wear the uniform, but military families still serve and bear battle scars. They are often overlooked, but the Northeast Georgia Veterans Society is honoring them in a special way.
The organization dedicated a statue at Freedom Park in Cleveland in memory of the families of fallen service members.
A small crowd braved the cold weather on December 16 to take part in the special ceremony. President of the Northeast Georgia Veterans Society, Ron Webb, said the monument is meant to honor those who lost family members in the service.
At Saturday’s dedication, Webb shared the story of Betty Bertie Mae Gibbs. Her husband was killed in World War II and her son died in Vietnam. Upon learning of her husband’s death, Gibbs’ daughter-in-law suffered a miscarriage and lost their unborn child.
It was a heart-rending example of the sacrifices military families make and the toll those sacrifices can take.
The statue depicts a soldier presenting a folded American flag to a family member of a fallen service member.
WW I vet also honored
In addition to the families, the Northeast Georgia Veterans Society on Saturday also recognized a World War I veteran.
Eugene Stanhope Jarrett’s name was not included on the veterans’ statue previously dedicated at the park. Webb said the group only recently learned that Jarrett served in the Army and died of the Spanish flu.
The veterans paid tribute to Jarrett at Saturday’s ceremony.
