LEWISTON — A new star in Veterans Memorial Park is dedicated to the sacrifice and service of Maine’s Gold Star Mothers, and in honor of the children they lost in service.

During Saturday’s annual Memorial Day observation, the L-A Veterans Council dedicated the newest monument in the park to mothers. It is a large granite-framed star filled with marigolds and set on the incline of a hill.

Leading up to the star is a walkway that ends where seven stones have been set in honor of deceased children: Paul R. Bernard, U.S. Navy, Vietnam era; Arthur D. Paradis, U.S. Army, Korean War; S/Sgt. Gordon Kimball Sr., U.S. Air Force, Korean War; Sgt. Reginald W. Emery Sr., U.S. Army, Korean War; Arthur J. Roy, U.S. Navy, Vietnam War; Clinton D. Soule Jr., U.S. Navy, World War II; and Georgette Gerry, U.S. Marine Corps.

American Gold Star Mothers is a nonprofit set up in 1928 to assist Gold Star Mothers and their families in dealing with their losses. According to Lewiston Gold Star Mother Joyce Richmond, “We cooperate with veterans organizations to commemorate the deeds of our fallen service members.”

The mothers also work to support veterans programs, including Honor Flight Maine, Wreaths Across America, Riders for the Fallen and the L-A Veterans Council.

Richmond, whose daughter was in the U.S. Air Force, was joined at the ceremony by Gold Star Mother Bethel Shields of Auburn, whose son Lt. James B. “Jeb” Shields was killed in July 1991 in a Navy plane collision during the first Persian Gulf War.

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The Veterans Council also dedicated the 30th memorial stone in the park, bringing the number of names engraved on the collective stones to about 8,000 veterans, each with some connection to Maine.

U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin was the guest speaker for the event, and remarked on the presence of a number of young children among the 300 or so gathered there, noting that they are America’s future.

“Today it’s important to remember that freedom is not free. It is not free,” he said.

In the years leading up to the formation of this country and on into its republic, Poliquin said that 1.5 million people have been lost to war, “people who stepped up to defend our Constitution. Our freedom.”

Memorial Day, he said, is the “the day that we remember those who did not make it home.” And, he said, the day for Americans to recognize that we “are all standing on the shoulders of the people” who died in service.

“Let’s always remember the people who sacrificed their lives and their families that sacrificed so much,” he said.

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House Republican Leader Ken Fredette, a lieutenant colonel in the Maine Air National Guard, spoke at the service and said he hoped Americans recognize the “positive change that our military has done for the world,” a “military made up of ordinary people” who stepped forward to serve.

Other guest speakers included Ben Tucker III, representing U.S. Sen. Angus King, Lewiston City Councilor and veteran Michel Lajoie, and state Rep. Bettyann Sheats, a U.S. Army veteran who was called upon to represent the city of Auburn.

As the ceremony was winding down, veterans Joan and Harold Millette started to make their way out of the park. The couple, who recently moved to Livermore from Lewiston, said they came to the Lewiston event because they were part of the original group that established the Veterans Memorial Park and they feel it’s important to continue supporting its honorable purpose.

“It’s very emotional for us,” said Joan Millette, who is a veteran of the Grenada era.

Harold Millette, a U.S. Army veteran who served in the Vietnam War, said he finds it helps him to come to the park and see the memorials, and to read the names engraved on the stones.

“These memorials are a testament to the people of Lewiston who donate” in support of the park and what it stands for, he said. “It’s amazing.”

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As the Millettes turned to leave, U.S. Army veteran Fred Leadbetter Sr. — who also served in the Vietnam War — walked by and stopped before Harold Millette. Leadbetter stuck out his hand and said, “Welcome home.”

Millette grabbed Leadbetter in a firm embrace, and the two men held fast and thanked each other with obvious warmth.

Leadbetter’s is one of 200 names engraved on the newest memorial stone, and his family was at the park to watch the unveiling.

Just before the stone’s cover was removed, Leadbetter said, “There should be stones for these gals,” pointing to his wife. “The wives. They don’t get the recognition they deserve for our military operation. They are often left alone, with little notice,” when their husbands are called up, he said. “They take care of our families back home.”

The stone bearing Leadbetter’s name is different from others in the park. The emblems on top of 29 of the stones are carved in white.

The emblem on the newest stone — in honor of Gold Star Mothers — is engraved in gold.

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For mothers.

jmeyer@sunjournal.com

Gold Star Mothers Bethel Shields, left, and Joyce Richmond plant a flag in the new Gold Star Mothers memorial at Veterans Memorial Park in Lewiston on Saturday. (Andree Kehn/Sun Journal)

Gold Star Mothers Bethel Shields, left, and Joyce Richmond, far right, are escorted by Willie Danforth as they carry a memorial wreath Saturday at Veterans Memorial Park in Lewiston. (Andree Kehn/Sun Journal)

Veterans Joan and Harold Millette look at the Silhouette Project in Veterans Memorial Park in Lewiston on Saturday. (Andree Kehn/Sun Journal)

Veterans Donald Dube, third from the right, Bert Dutil and Norman Cote salute during the national anthem at Veterans Memorial Park in Lewiston on Saturday. (Andree Kehn/Sun Journal)

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Gold Star mothers Bethel Shields and Joyce Richmond look at the new veterans memorial at Veterans Memorial Park in Lewiston on Saturday. (Andree Kehn/Sun Journal)

Gold Star mothers Bethel Shields, left, and Joyce Richmond pose next to the new veterans memorial at Veterans Memorial Park in Lewiston on Saturday. (Andree Kehn/Sun Journal)

State Rep. Bettyann Sheats reads a poem at Veterans Memorial Park in Lewiston on Saturday. (Andree Kehn/Sun Journal)

The Memorial Day Parade steps onto Longley Bridge as it makes its way from Auburn to Lewiston on Saturday. (Andree Kehn/Sun Journal)

Gold Star Mothers Bethel Shields, left, and Joyce Richmond ride in the Memorial Day parade Saturday as it winds from Auburn to Lewiston. (Andree Kehn/Sun Journal)


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