Charlotte Hall, MD— “To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory. Both because of what has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations,” said U.S. President Woodrow Wilson on November 11, 1919.

This year, many different communities across the United States are celebrating Veterans Day by attending a parade or saying thank you to a service woman or man. Several of these retired service members reside in Southern Maryland at the Charlotte Hall Veterans Home.

The Charlotte Hall Veterans Home opened in 1985 and is celebrating 30 years of “Serving Those Who Served.” What is fascinating is that 88 percent of the population of veterans at the Charlotte Hall Veterans Home served during war time. Just as intriguing is the number of distinguished medal recipients that live at Charlotte Hall Veterans Home. This list would include one Silver Star, one Legion of Merit, 17 Bronze Stars, 17 Purple Hearts, and one POW.

TheBayNet had the opportunity to speak with four individuals–each individual corresponding to his respective branch of the armed forces. These individuals include TEC 5 David Brewington [Army], Airman 1st Class Clyde Wilson [Air Force], Lt. Col. Philip Forbes [Marines] and Petty Officer 3rd Class William Young [Navy].

“I entered Louisiana State University in 1955 and graduated in 1960, and subsequently went right into the Marine Corps. I chose the infantry branch because, to tell you the truth, I wanted to fight,”said Forbes.  

Forbes has been awarded eight distinguished medals, including a Purple Heart. Forbes retired in 1988 and still lives by the Marine Motto, which is “Semper Fidelis,” which translated to English means “always faithful.”

“What Veterans Day means to me is that everybody should put in their time for the country. There was a time when everybody got drafted to fight,” said Wilson.

Wilson spent eight years in the Air Force in the personnel division, he spent a large amount of his service in Texas, but recalls when he was sent over to Turkey.

“When I went over to Turkey they were still using oxen to plow fields to plant seed, It was a big change when I came back to Texas. We have it pretty good over here in the United States,” said Wilson.

TEC 5 Brewington served in the Army during World War II, he spent three years in the Army from 1943 to 1946 in the 3716 Quartermaster company hauling supplies in New Guinea and the Philippines.

“I remember breaking my ankle going to New Guinea, I was sitting reading a book. The Japanese patrol planes came into sight, and I [Brewington] jumped off the platform I was reading [on] and broke my ankle. As soon as I got to New Guinea the doctor told me he might have to break my ankle again! Luckily he didn’t have to,” said Brewington.

When Brewington was asked what Veterans Day means to him, he replied, “I was always active in the American Legion, we had a big family of war veterans from all the wars since World War II. If I was able, I would want to be at the American Legion on Veterans Day helping out and talking to my friends,” said Brewington.

The final branch of the military was the Navy. Petty Officer 3rd Class Young was very excited to talk about his experiences in the United States Navy.

“I was in what they call an amphibious corps, and we had 22 landing crafts. We picked up troops and took them into combat, and I drove a 36-foot landing craft [Higgins boat]. I was in six invasions and two occupations, we were busy. I think the skipper wanted to make a name for himself, so he volunteered for everything,” said Young.

It should be noted that Young served in the Air Force for fourteen years, as a result
of budget cuts in the Navy. Young retired as a technical sergeant from the Air Force. 

“One thing I do when I meet people, is tell them what we [fellow military members] did. We were like brothers together. It didn’t make any difference what branch you were in, we were all fighting for the same cause,” said Young.

TheBayNet also had the opportunity to speak to Greg Osborne who is the Administrator at Charlotte Hall Veterans Home. Osborne was very excited to talk about the aspects that make Charlotte Hall Veterans Home unique. Osborne brings a lot of enthusiasm to the veterans home. He is retired from the U.S. Air Force and cares deeply about veterans.

“I am a veteran myself, I did twenty years in the U.S. Air Force. It is a huge deal to me to be able to work for a company where I get to take care of veterans everyday. When I retired from the Air Force, I didn’t know what I wanted to do until I found this job. This job is not a job at all, it is a passion,” said Osborne.

Contact Charles Seifert at c.seifert@thebaynet.com.