Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient in Bedford Wednesday

The Bedford Village Morning School, Wednesday night, hosted a Freedom Celebration in Bedford, and the featured guest of the event is a Congressional Medal of Honor recipient.

Colonel Harvey Curtiss (Barney) Barnum, Jr. – who graduated from Saint Anselm College in 1962, prior to joining the the United States Marines Corps and earning multiple medals of valor and honor while serving in the Vietnam War – spoke at the event at the Manchester Country Club in Bedford.

Sue Tyrie, Director of the Bedford Village Morning School, said an anonymous donor attended a similar evening in New York City and was so taken by the event that he wanted to share it with parents and students, past and present, of the Bedford Village Morning School.

"This donor felt our values and the values to be discussed tonight were so similar that he wanted to do this for us, and so he did," said Tyrie.

The event includesda social hour, oral and video presentation from the 73-year-old Barnum – one of 78 living recipients – as well as a silent auction for a Congressional Medal of Honor coffee table book.

Members of the Bedford Police and Fire Departments, as well as local veterans were also invited to attend the Freedom Forum.