One of the nation’s few remaining World War II veterans, W.P Chastain still remembers the sacrifices made nearly 70 years ago.

He sat near the back of Centennial Memorial Park in Anniston Monday for the Memorial Day ceremony holding a sign proclaiming his priorities — “I am first a Christian, second a Patriot. Call me any name you want but Democrat.”

“I was in the Air Corps,” Chastain said. “See the wings on my cap? I was a radio operator on a crew carrier, and we dropped paratroopers on D-day.”

Chastain was lucky during his service. His plane was shot down and crash-landed in Belgium in an airfield the British had taken over just the day before.

Some of his friends weren’t as fortunate.

“I’ve got three close friends that were in the Air Corps also, and two of them are gold names,” Chastain said, pointing to the walls that bear the names of his deceased comrades from Calhoun County in gold lettering. “They lost their lives in the war.”

He was at the ceremony to honor them and all those men and women who died in service before and after his friends.

J.D. Reeves, a Vietnam Veteran and member of the American Legion Post 312, attended both the ceremony in the park and a ceremony at the American Legion post in Anniston.

“I lost a lot of comrades in Vietnam — I got shot up myself, got a Purple Heart — nevertheless I’m here to honor those that made the ultimate sacrifice for America,” Reeves said. “We should not forget those young men left families behind. A lot of times we tend to forget.”

The walls now bear the names of 10,456 veterans killed in action in World Wars 1 and 2, Korea, Vietnam, and the Persian Gulf.

Standing near the back of the crowd in the park, family members of Kyle Comfort of Jacksonville, the newest addition to the long list of Calhoun County veterans who died serving their country, were especially emotional.

Brooke Comfort, his widow, and Karena Comfort, his sister, laid a rose at the foot of the fallen comrade memorial during the ceremony.

“You never think that you’ll come to one of these, having to do it because it was yours,” she said, wiping tears from her eyes. “It just means a lot that the community once again pulled together to honor the ones that have fallen.”

Her father, Mike Clopton, had never had a Memorial Day filled with such personal loss.

“It just makes me think of all the people that’s lost loved ones in the wars and things,” Clopton said. “Since we lost Kyle, this has really brought it home to me.”

With the country fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq now, patriots of all ages came out to the Memorial Day celebrations to honor their friends and family overseas.

Charlin Copeland was at the American Legion on West 10th Street for his friends. He knows people serving right now and wanted to honor their service and thank the veterans at the Legion Hall — people like Rodney Formby, a member of the National Guard for 18 years; Ervin Rudolph, a Vietnam veteran who served 22 years in the Air Force; both are now members of the post. And there were men like Randy Maddox, a Desert Storm veteran and son of a Vietnam veteran, who attended the ceremony in the park.

Maddox and his wife Alicia brought their two children to the ceremony because it’s close to his heart.

“We need to constantly remember and be thankful for what these gentlemen have done,” Maddox said. “They need to be praised for it and remembered for it.”

It’s a sentiment that was echoed at both ceremonies, that the freedoms we enjoy were paid for with the blood of the veterans and that their sacrifice must be honored.

“All of us, young and old should remember that they went forth not to conquer or enslave, but to defend this country and the cause of human freedom,” said Williemae Looney, past president of the American Legion Auxiliary. “We are obligated to help our children and grandchildren understand the meaning of their sacrifice and the meaning of war.”

Contact staff writer Laura Camper at 256-235-3545.