Remembering Pearl Harbor

The annual wreath laying ceremony was held at Wayne Memorial Hospital (WMH) on Dec. 5 in recognition of Pearl Harbor Day - Dec. 7 - and to honor the heroic members of our armed forces who served that fateful day 84 years ago.

Veterans from VFW Post 531, American Legion Post 254, and members of the WMH administration and staff attended the solemn ceremony. Army veteran and WMH Chief of Medical Staff Dr. Sean McVeigh, FCCP, FACP, led the ceremony followed by an opening statement by Hugh Rechner, a former U.S. Army pilot who served two tours in the Vietnam War and past chairman of the WMH Board of Trustees.

With immense respect, the program also included a summary account of the horrific event in 1941 by Reverend Dale Pepper VFW Post 531 and Jim Carbone American Legion Post 254, the Pledge of Allegiance, a memorial prayer. The observance ended with the wreath placement at the hospital’s original plaque dedicated to 55 local soldiers who served in World War I and the playing of Taps by local bugler Doug Wyllie.

One of the darkest days in U.S. history, the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii was called by President Franklin D. Roosevelt “a date which will live in infamy.” The surprise attack by the Japanese claimed approximately 2,400 lives and marked the official entry of the U.S. into World War II.