Korean War Memories Stirred at Mass. State House Ceremony

More than 70 local Korean War veterans were honored by the Republic of Korea in a ceremony at the State House on August 11th a Saturday afternoon.

“Sixty-eight years ago they came to a country they had never heard of to help a people they had never met,” said Pi Woo-Jin, the South Korean minister of patriots and veterans affairs, through a translator.  “And what made them take on their journey was a sense of humanity and a responsibility to protect freedom and peace,” Pi told the crowd.

Ambassador for Peace medals were awarded to 72 veterans, 17 of those posthumously. The ceremony, which included half a dozen speeches and an extended performance of traditional Korean music, was attended by an overflow crowd in the Hall of Flags. “You, who risked your own life to defend freedom, democracy, and peace under the flag of the United Nations, are the true ambassadors for peace,” said Pi, who had traveled from South Korea for the ceremony.

Korean officials said that the current political moment lent an extra dimension to the ceremony.  “Now, changes are being made in the Republic of Korea,” said Pi. “We are at a historical turning point for the permanent peace that we have desired for a long time to be established on the Korean Peninsula,” she said, referencing the return of US servicemen’s remains last month. “I believe that is a true way of repaying the sacrifice of UN veterans and families is to create a peaceful Korean Peninsula free of the threat of another war. In the meantime, please support us,” she said.

But the veterans’ thoughts were mainly on the past. Asked the name of the song, Binns gave a dismissive wave and broke into a big smile. “Oh, I can’t remember that,” he said. “While you were in Korea, your families huddled by the radio, breathless as they listened to reports of what you were going through,” said Albert McCarthy, a vice president for the Korean War Veterans Association. “The cold, the misery, the fear, the bloodshed, the suffering, the death of your comrades of arms while struggling to find those that went missing,” he told the crowd.

McCarthy gestured to the handful of Korean officials present for the ceremony. “You went to Korea so many years ago, but today, Korea has come to you to thank you for their freedom and their country,” he said.