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Standing Room Only at Cedar Park Vet event
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Leander & Vista Ridge ROTC Color Guard
The city of Cedar Park hosted its first annual Veteran’s Day event on Sunday at the Cedar Park Recreation Center. The ceremony had to be moved inside due to the rain. Due to that and the outpouring of support for the military after the tragedy at Ft. Hood, over 350 people attended, overflowing the room. “Called to Serve” was the theme of the event and Capt. Mitch Fuller, a member of the Cedar Park City Council and the Texas Army National Guard, spoke on that topic. Capt. Fuller served in Iraq in 2005 and is currently on active duty, stationed at Camp Mabry. He asked all the World War II veterans to stand and be honored saying that when he was deployed, his deployment was for 365 days but for World War II it was for the “duration plus six months.” He told about how, in his view, every city in America, should have a place to honor veterans and how he is so proud to be a part of that in Cedar Park. The city is in process of building Veterans Memorial Park, which is currently under development at 2525 New Hope Drive. He said he was pleased to be able to consult with Bill and Janet Norwood, who attend my church and whose son, Byron, was a Marine sergeant who heroically lost his life in Fallujah. The Norwoods helped the city of Pflugerville build a lovely memorial to veterans that honors Byron and others. They are assisting Cedar Park with their memorial. Capt. Fuller spoke of other heroes in the crowd and their families. He singled out Mary Dale, wife of Cedar Park City Councilmember Tony Dale. She served in Kuwait in the late 1990’s and he said she is an example of the many women in combat today. He said that Mrs. Dale, a local attorney, still does “PT,” or physical training, in that she runs in marathons and is an example of what women can do. Her husband, Tony, also served, as did Councilmember Lowell Moore, Councilmember Scott Mitchell and former Councilmember Stephen Thomas, all of whom attended, as did Mayor Lemon and the rest of the Cedar Park City Council. Captain Fuller then spoke of the recent tragic shootings at Ft. Hood. The large crowd became hushed when he said, “We all have heavy hearts, but I can tell you, the Army keeps rolling along. We are Army strong! We are Texas strong! We will get through this!” The crowd responded with loud applause.
Capt. Fuller and retired Sgt. Bob Carter, who is chairman of the Citizens Advisory Committee for the Veteran’s Park project, presented pavers to two Cedar Park families whose sons lost their lives in the current war on terror. The families of Matthew Morris and Jay Sevier accepted the awards. Mrs. Morris, in a voice shaken with emotion, thanked the crowd and said that having folks remember her son helps a bit to heal the hole in her heart. The pavers will be a part of the memorial at the new park. Capt. Fuller also remarked that Matthew Morris’ father also served in the military in Vietnam and his younger brother, Sam, was also in attendance as a member of the local ROTC unit.
The ceremony also included several school organizations, such as the Artie Henry Middle School Band plus the Leander HS USAF ROTC and the Vista Ridge HS ROTC. Several students from local elementary schools read short essays, including one by Emily Mowatt, a fifth grade student at Knowles Elementary, titled “Heroes.” The first few lines sum up the thoughts of many at the event, “Veterans are caring, Veterans are brave, We thank them and owe them for all that they gave.”
To find out more about the Cedar Pak Veterans' Memorial or to donate to it, visit www.cpvetmemorial.org
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