Veterans remember Pearl Harbor at riverfront ceremony

~Editor's note: This story has been changed from its original version to correct the name of Roy Rhodes.

Area veterans from American Legion Post 63 and members of its color guard gathered Monday morning at the chilly Cape Girardeau riverfront to mark the 74th anniversary of the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. A wreath was cast into the swiftly moving Mississippi River to mark the solemn occasion and pay tribute to those who lost their lives that day.

Richard Hengst, sergeant at arms for Post 63 in Cape Girardeau, told the crowd of nearly two dozen people -- mostly Vietnam War-era veterans -- the Dec. 7, 1941, attack doesn't register with many Americans today. The attack killed more than 2,400 Americans and sparked the nation's entry into World War II.

"Today, many of us may not remember Pearl Harbor, but almost all of us have firsthand experience of a terrible attack on our homeland," Hengst said, referring to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. "For too many years, the memory of Dec. 7, 1941, was slipping away. It's heartbreaking to know that it took another tragic event to get us all thinking about our history.

"The attack on Sept. 11 serves as a stark reminder that as citizens of this great land of freedom, we all too often forget the lessons from history," Hengst said.

A wreath floats down the Mississippi River in honor of Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day on Monday in Cape Girardeau. (Fred Lynch)

He added it's important to remember those who died at Pearl Harbor, "taken in the prime of their lives by the all-consuming fires, explosions and strafing attacks."

Hengst insisted the Pearl Harbor and Sept. 11 attacks must be remembered and "paint the unforgettable collage of the price extracted by a lack of military preparedness."

Hengst added: "'Remember Pearl Harbor' must ever be the symbol of the consequence of underestimating the threats to peace and world stability."

Harold Green tosses a wreath into the Mississippi River at the annual American Legion Post 63 Pearl Harbor observance Monday, Dec. 7, 2015 in Cape Girardeau. (Fred Lynch)

Hengst told fellow veterans: "It is a history lesson worthy of retelling over generations." He added, "That is why we are here today. Don't let anyone forget it."

Hengst said the ceremony was moving to him because his mother's sister's son, Lloyd Dale Clippard, was killed in the attack on Pearl Harbor. Clippard was the first Cape Girardeau County serviceman to die in the war.

Army veteran Roy Rhodes of Scott City served in Vietnam. Surveying the small gathering before the start of the ceremony, the bearded Rhodes lamented, "There should be a big crowd to remember Pearl Harbor, but there won't be."

He added, "Most of the people from that era are deceased."

Rhodes said he believes Americans are patriotic, but the younger generation barely knows of Pearl Harbor.

"It's out of sight and out of mind," he said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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