ASSOCIATED PRESS
Tomorrow marks the 50th anniversary of the armistice that ended the 1950-53 Korean War. The Korean War Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., is shown here.
Hawaii salutes
its Korean War
vetsIt lost more men per capita
than any other U.S. state
or territory
Hawaii's veterans of the "Forgotten War" in Korea will not be forgotten this weekend. Celebrations in their honor will include a parade through Waikiki this morning and a tribute at the Waikiki Shell tomorrow night.
"This is the homecoming we never got," said retired Brig. Gen. Irwin Cockett, an Army veteran of both the Korean and Vietnam wars.
The island's observance of the Korean War armistice, signed 50 years ago, is part of tributes nationwide that include wreath-laying ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery tomorrow and the unveiling of a commemorative stamp by the U.S. Postal Service.
Gov. Linda Lingle has proclaimed tomorrow Korean War Veterans Day to honor those who served during the war and the nearly 34,000 U.S. servicemen who were killed, including 456 from Hawaii -- more per capita than any other state or territory.
Today's parade through Waikiki will begin at 9 a.m. at Fort DeRussy and end at Kapiolani Park. Other events include an armistice memorial service at 10 a.m. tomorrow at the National Cemetery of the Pacific and a tribute later that day at the Waikiki Shell, beginning at 7 p.m.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Republic of Korea soldiers march toward Korea's east-central front near Lookout Mountain, east of the Pukhan River, on June 28, 1953, during the Korean War.
Cockett, who now serves as head of the state Office of Veterans Services, credits Dennis Fujii, who heads the Pacific Command's community relations branch, for spearheading today's Waikiki parade down Kalakaua Avenue.
"There was a meeting four or five years ago where a Korean War veteran mentioned that they never got a homecoming parade like other veterans," Cockett said. "Dennis never forgot that and has been working since then for this parade to happen."
"Many have called the Korean War the 'Forgotten War,'" said Cockett, who once commanded the Hawaii Army National Guard. "This parade will show Hawaii's Korean War veterans and the families who lost loved ones that our nation never forgets their sacrifices."
Among today's parade participants will be Pearl Jacobson, who served in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War era but was never sent to the Korean peninsula.
Jacobson, a member of Oahu's Veterans Council, said that she asked to be included when she found out that "there would be no women in the parade representing the women who served during the Korean War."
Jacobson said she spent for four years in the Air Force between 1952 and 1956 working as an auditor at Samson Air Force Base in Geneva, N.Y. She later joined the Air Force Reserve and the Naval Reserve, retiring from the service in 1992.
She spent active duty at Samson, which was mainly a training base, she said. Samson will be holding its 50th reunion in September.
"I think there was about two barracks filled with women," Jacobson said. "We all did administrative duties and did go into the field a few times. We learned to shoot a rifle and even had some training in wearing a gas mask, but it wasn't anything like what women in the service can do today."
Today's welcome-home parade will feature color guards, three marching units and four bands from the various branches of the military stationed in Hawaii, as well as more than 200 Korean War veterans riding in 20 military Humvees.
Retired four-star Gen. Fred Weyand, whose military service includes World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, will be the parade marshal. Weyand, whose last job in the Army was as chief of staff, also will be the guest speaker at tomorrow's Punchbowl service.
Cockett said the evening Waikiki Shell tribute to Korean War veterans will honor the work of Army combat photographer Al Chang, whose pictures covered every war since World War II.
Cockett said Chang's photos will be featured as the memoirs of various soldiers who served in Korea are read.
North Korea invaded South Korea in June 1950. The firing ended on July 27, 1953, with an armistice but no peace treaty. The United States still stations 37,000 troops in South Korea.
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Lingle finds way to honor
vets without public funds
The Lingle administration has raised $33,000 in private donations to fund commemoration activities for the 50th anniversary of the Korean War.
The announcement yesterday essentially negates action taken by Democrat legislators during the July 8 special session when they overturned Lingle's veto of $30,000 for Korean War activities and enacted the bill into law.
Lingle had stressed during the bitter partisan debate on Senate Bill 317, CD1, that the state could not afford to use money from the state general fund for the remembrance and that private funds were found and available.
Yesterday, the governor refrained from an "I told you so" and instead praised state Adjutant General Robert Lee and his department for raising more than was needed.
"When you run up against a wall one way, instead of trying to blow it up into a big political issue, why don't you go out and try to help the veterans then?" Lingle said. "Instead of just using tax money, why don't you use some initiative and get out and find another way to achieve it?"
Lingle, Lee and others were among the dozen individual donors who gave between $1,000 and $2,000 for the commemoration. A lengthy list of corporate donors also helped raise the $33,000.
Lee said the state Department of Defense initially took $18,000 more in budget cuts so it could give that money to the Korean War events. He then had the department and the Office of Veterans Services find an additional $12,000 from donors.
But since all $33,000 came from donations, the department can now restore the $18,000 in cuts, Lee said.
"We are overwhelmed at the generosity shown to our Korean War veterans," he said.
Lingle said the donation sends a strong, positive message about her teamwork-oriented administration.
Lingle issued a proclamation yesterday declaring Sunday as Korean War Veterans Day in Hawaii to honor the Americans who served in the war.
Hawaii lost the highest number of service personnel per capita than any other state or territory during the war.
