Portsmouth Remembers Those Who Served

City officials and residents gathered at Goodwin Park in front of the Sailors and Soldiers Memorial to pay tribute to all of the men and women who have proudly served their country in the Armed Forces.

The ceremony was held at 11 a.m., but it was not accompanied by the traditional Veterans Day Parade after Portsmouth Veterans Council members said it was cancelled due to a lack of marchers.

But as they have done for several years, the community came together for a solemn ceremony to honor Portsmouth's veterans who have served in every war since the Revolutionary War and the city's veterans who still protect the nation today.

"You are out there away from home between us and the enemy," said Mayor Eric Spear. "You and your families represent what is best about America."

Spear said the city owes it veterans a great debt for keeping its citizens safe during war and peace time. Spear was accompanied by Assistant Mayor Robert Lister, City Councilor Chris Dwyer and City Manager John Bohenko.

The American Post Legion 6 Detachment was also there and two Portsmouth High School students played "Taps," at the end of the ceremony as those gathered bowed their heads in remembrance.

Richard Brooks, Adjutant for American Legion Post 6, reminded the crowd that there are still far too many veterans who are homeless even though a majority of them served their country well and were honorably discharged. By taking the time to give returning veterans a simple thank you, Brooks said it goes a long way toward helping veterans find their way home.

Long after they leave the service, Brook said veterans are always standing at the ready to serve their country. "When an emergency hits, there is a good chance a veteran will be the first to respond," Brook said.

"We should all endeavor to serve our veterans as well as they have served us," he said.

U.S. Navy Commander James Barnes of the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine, was the keynote speaker. He said Veterans Day gives all members of the community an opportunity to celebrate the choice veterans made to serve their country whether it was during World War II, the Cold War or "in the jungles of Vietnam."

He said Veterans Day also means a great deal to those like himself who still wear the uniform and their families. He encourage the veterans present to tell their stories to their family members and other community members, especially the stories about why they chose to serve.

Barnes said he followed in the footsteps of his father, who served in the Army during the height of the Cold War in Germany when the Berlin Wall was built and his grandfather, an Army veteran who won the Silver Star and Bronze Star during the Battle of Bulge in World War II for saving the lives of two comrades.

Like many veterans, Barnes said he is blessed to have a loving wife, Maureen, whom he met after entering the service, and their children. He said his son, Ryan, is working towards entering the R.O.T.C. program soon.

Barnes also said there are many reminders of how the proud legacy of veterans' service is being carried forward by the current generation of Armed Forces members. He said the U.S.S. Michael Murphy ship was recently built and commissioned in the Bath Iron Works Shipyard in Maine. It was named after a Navy Seals Lt. Michael Murphy, who was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his service in Afghanistan.

"You are our heroes because you have repeatedly triumphed over adversity," Barnes said to the veterans present.