The Eight & Forty Ladies Veterans’ Organization is inviting all veterans and guests to The Spot Friday for their fourth annual Pearl Harbor Day Remembrance event.
The event will be held from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at The Spot, located next to PJ’s Coffee Shop.
At the event last year, there was a ceremony held outside of the Union County Courthouse where attendees honored veterans who were Prisoners of War (POW) and Missing in Action (MIA).
Elaine Strickland, with the Eight & Forty Ladies Veterans’ Organization, said she believes they will have the ceremony again this year. The ceremony served to honor those service members in all branches of the military who were held as prisoners of war or went missing in action.
The event at The Spot is held for veterans to come together, exchange stories and just talk, Strickland said.
“It’s very nice to hear the veterans who come by,” Strickland said. “They remember what their fathers that were in World War II told them and they exchange stories. We have a lot of veterans that do come.”
Strickland said anywhere from 30 to 50 veterans are present at the event, which is a come-and-go, casual event. She said that some of the veterans bring artifacts from wars to show people and discuss. She added that they encourage the veterans to bring items to the event “if they would like to.”
She said there will be refreshments and food available at no charge for the veterans, which will include cookies, sandwiches, coffee and more.
“It’s to honor the remembrance of all of the military men who served during the Pearl Harbor days,” she said. “We also just honor all veterans, but that’s what Pearl Harbor Day is for, to honor the remembrance of those who served.”
Strickland added that the Eight & Forty organization’s mission is to support the veterans and it is heavily involved in supporting children who have respiratory illnesses.
Kaitlyn Rigdon can be reached at 870-862-6611 or [email protected].