Area ceremony to honorMarines on a special day
Sunday, February 17, 2008
By PATRICIA C. McCARTER
Times Staff Writer patricia.mccarter@htimes.com

Feb. 19 will mark63 years since theIwo Jima invasion

Let's test your knowledge of important dates from Word War II.

Dec. 7? Easy. That was the bombing on Pearl Harbor.

June 6? Sure. That was D-Day, the landing of allied troops on the beaches of Normandy.

Feb. 19? Anyone?

It only signifies the beginning of one of the most historic battles in U.S. Marine Corps history. And on what will be the 63rd anniversary of the invasion of Iwo Jima, some men who were on that island during the battle will be recognized for their courage.

Honor Flight Tennessee Valley, a nonprofit group that takes local World War II veterans to see their memorial in Washington D.C., will hold a ceremony on Tuesday to not only commemorate what the Marines did there, but those former fighters will be given a memento of the island - small vials of sand from Iwo Jima.

"Iwo Jima was the defining moment for Marines, and I thought it would be special for our organization to serve as a catalyst for remembering what those men did and endured 63 years ago," said Joe Fitzgerald, local president of Honor Flight.

"For years and years, the Iwo Jima memorial - also known as the Marine Corps War Memorial - was the only memorial in our nation's capital for World War II veterans. That's how important that battle was."

The ceremony will be Tuesday at 10 a.m. at Veterans Memorial Museum off Johnson Road. Fitzgerald said Mike Ward with the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce collected some volcanic sand when he visited Iwo Jima, and he offered it to Honor Flight.

Fitzgerald said 18 World War II-era Marines have been invited to the ceremony, and some will talk about their experiences there. Retired Marine Lt. Gen. Frank Libutti will also have remarks.

"I don't think anything like this has been done here before," Fitzgerald said. "Not many people know it, but Feb. 19 is an incredibly special day. We need to remember it." After the invasion, the Marines fought another 35 days to take the island.

Ellie