When was the last time you left on a trip and when you returned, you were greeted with the smiles, hugs, and the laughter of family and friends? As a retired military veteran who has experienced numerous deployments, the sight and sounds of a “Welcome Home” crowd was more than just music to my ears, it was a healing salve to my soul.
There are many, however, who never get a chance to hear the music, see the flags flying or feel the warmth of loving arms around them — soldiers that make one final trip home because they have paid the ultimate price of freedom with their life. There are families that never have a chance to say goodbye as their loved ones fall under a military category of MIA.
Beginning at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 31, at Hopewell Baptist Church, the Shirley family will have the long awaited silence broken as the remains of World War II pilot James Frank Gatlin Jr. are brought home from overseas, and the memory of his service and sacrifice will be celebrated in a special memorial service. The family wishes to extend an invitation to all veterans of the VFW and American Legion to join with them as they welcome home a lost hero and bring to closure the story of his service and sacrifice.
For more information call Hopewell Baptist Church, 6001 County Road 39, at (813) 737-3053.
— Dr. Dan Middlebrooks