About 1.8 million U.S. troops served in the Korean War theater between 1950 and 1953. On Monday, South Korean officials held a dinner to honor American troops killed on distant battlefields with names like “Old Baldy” and “Battle Mountain” and their now-aging comrades who made it back home.
The Honoring Our Heroes banquet was held at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington. Organizers said it was dedicated to those who fought in Korea and the soldiers who have kept vigil on the peninsula since then as part of U.S. Forces Korea.
“There are many special people who are here tonight,” said Kang Jung-ai, South Korea’s Minister of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, who flew in from Seoul to attend the event. “Today’s banquet is to express gratitude to the veterans of the Korean War from the people and the government.”
Ms. Kang said her father also fought in the Korean War some 75 years ago.
“These veterans here remind me of them. I can’t thank them enough for their contributions,” she said. “We want to express our gratitude to them while they’re still with us.”
One of the veterans who battled against Communist forces in Korea was former Marine Pfc. Rudy Meekins.
He was part of the surprise amphibious assault at Inchon that resulted in a decisive victory in favor of the U.S.-led United Nations Command. He later fought in the deadly Battle of the Chosin Reservoir, earning himself the title of one of the “Chosin Few.”
Mr. Meekins was in the field artillery when he first landed in Korea. But that changed because of the freezing weather, an enemy nearly as deadly as their North Koreans and Chinese adversaries.
“I ended up in the infantry because our [artillery] froze,” he said.
Mr. Meekins said he came to the banquet to see what the event was all about and also to represent his fellow Marines who didn’t make it back.
“I’m here for them,” he said.
