Dedication ceremony held to honor fallen soldiers from Corky Row

FALL RIVER — A parade of veterans, neighbors, friends and local politicians made their way to the stone memorial in Griffin Park on Sunday to honor those from the Corky Row neighborhood who served their country and gave the ultimate sacrifice, including the park’s namesake, U.S. Army Staff Sgt. James T. Griffin.

A new flag pole and soon-to-be-installed memorial plaque were also dedicated in those soldiers’ honor.

Sgt. Griffin was 25 when he was killed in Germany serving as a ball turret gunner on a B-17 aircraft. He is buried in a military cemetery in the Netherlands.

Guest speaker, retired Navy Adm. Scott H. Swift, said that all those who served their country are bound by a common experience of serving in defense of their country.

“It’s reflected in a simple oath that all of us have taken. It’s not an oath to an individual. It’s an oath to the country and more specifically it’s an oath to the Constitution that forges the nation and guides the nation,” said Swift. “It was a simple oath that we all stated that was simply to serve and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic.”

Master of Ceremonies William Whitty said the new permanent memorial will honor all fallen soldiers from the Corky Row neighborhood.

“It will be a lasting tribute to all,” said Whitty.

City veterans agent Raymond Hague called on the Fall River Honor Guard to present arms as the American flag was unfurled and raised on Griffin Park’s new flag pole. Hague said a permanent bronze plaque is currently being manufactured as part of the new memorial.

“It will be here and I hope it will be here for many, many years to come,” said Hague.

Members of the Griffin family placed a wreath at the site of Staff Sgt. Griffin’s memorial while a bagpiper played "Amazing Grace" in the background.

The memorial event was capped off with the release of white doves to honor the Corky Row soldiers.

Sunday’s memorial was one of a number of Memorial Day weekend events honoring the nation’s fallen soldiers and military veterans.

On Monday there are five events.

The city will host a memorial ceremony in honor of U.S. Army Pvt. Michael E. Bouthot, U.S. Army National Guard Sgt. Robert J. Barrett and U.S. Army Spc. Scott A. Andrews, who were killed in action in the Global War on Terrorism. There will also be a dedication in honor of Spc. Eric M. Emond, who was killed in action on Nov. 27, 2018, in Afghanistan while serving in Operation Enduring Freedom. The ceremony will be held at 10 a.m. at Snake Hill in North Park on President Avenue.

At 11:30 a.m., a memorial ceremony will honor U.S. Army Cpl. David L. Miller, a WWII prisoner of war and survivor of the Bataan Death March of 1942 who died in a Japanese prison camp in 1943. Ceremony is at the Miller Green located at the intersection of South Main and Shove streets.

The Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 207 will conduct its annual Memorial Day ceremony at 12 p.m. aboard the USS Massachusetts at Battleship Cove.

The Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 207 will hold a prayer service and military honors at 1:30 p.m. at the War Memorial Monument located in upper Kennedy Park on South Main Street (across from St. Anne’s Church).

The city of Fall River and the Fall River Veterans’ Council will conduct the annual Memorial Day Parade that will travel from Kennedy Park on South Main Street east on Sullivan Drive to Third Street and will conclude at the Government Center atrium, where closing ceremonies will be held. Assembly for the parade is at Kennedy Park, at the corner of South Main Street and Bradford Avenue at 1 p.m. and step-off is at 2 p.m.

Email Jo C. Goode at jgoode@heraldnews.com.