Thousands raised for new veterans memorial
By Bonnie Edwards
Published in News on December 23, 2008 1:46 PM
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Joseph Hargrove
KENANSVILLE -- Nineteen sons of Duplin County were lost in Vietnam.
But thanks to county Historical Society President Charles Ingram and a generous community, their names will never be forgotten.
Just more than a month after 300 friends, neighbors and family members of those lost in the war gathered at Duplin Commons to formally honor their service, thousands of dollars have been raised to erect a monument bearing their names on the county courthouse lawn.
"We raised $7,000, more than enough to purchase and install the memorial," Ingram said. "The response was much greater than expected, and we are so pleased."
The monument is scheduled for a May 25 installation -- Memorial Day.
Of the men who died, 11 were in the Army, two were in the Air Force, two in the Marine Corps and two in the Navy.
In addition to the monument, the Historical Society is offering photographs of each of the fallen Vietnam War heroes to the Duplin County Veterans Museum and to the county to be displayed in the courthouse.
Money that is left over from the $7,000-plus already in the coffer will be used for future projects, including services and memorials for those sons of Duplin lost in other conflicts.
The Korean War was supposed to be next, but Ingram said the Historical Society will push that project to 2010 because members want to honor the war dead from World War II before any more of their surviving comrades die.
Those sons of Duplin lost in Vietnam include:
* Herbert John Artis
* Dennis Earl Basden
* Arthur Best
* Allen Lewis Boney
* Robert Allen Brown
* Charles Grey Costin
* Paul Edwin Gore
* Joseph Nelson Hargrove
* Lane Kornegay Hargrove
* Alex Ray Houston
* Litchfield Patterson Huie
* Jamie Jay Lanier
* Orland Thomas Lloyd
* Terry Kay Maready
* Dallas Ervin McKinney
* Clarence Leon "Boone" McNeill
* Lawrence Edward Philyaw
* George Patrick "Pat" Power
* William Irvin "Guy" Turner Jr.