Maryland honors Memorial Day

Flags were waved and wreathes were laid. The room was filled with red, white, and blue. This was the scene during Memorial Day ceremonies in Worcester and Wicomico County. Monday morning, hundreds gathered in the Wicomico County Civic Center as well as Ocean Pines Community Center to honor those lives lost during service.

Robert Hambury, a veteran, says, ” A lot of them didn’t come home. I have a step brother who’s name is out there on the wall. He was killed in France in WWII.”

Monday’s Memorial Day speeches brought tears to those who attended, but also a sense of pride to those who served.

James Spicknall a  Navy veteran and an organizer of the Worcester Memorial Day ceremony says, “all of them would say service to their nation is one of the most important things they’ve ever done in their life.”

“Always felt like I was doing something important,” says Hambury.

Robert Hambury spent 24 years in the Air Force, serving during the Korean and Vietnam war. Hambury even got a tattoo on his left leg in honor of his time served.

“I loved it. If I was 18 I would go back,” says Hambury.

Many veterans who attended Monday’s services were overcome with a wave of nostalgia, and for others it served as a reminder of the meaning of this holiday.

Captain Kurt Kastner, the keynote speaker at the Worcester ceremony says, “this is not just a day off. This is not a day that marks the beginning of the summer. This is not the end of the school year…this is a day to honor those who mad the ultimate sacrifice for us and their country.”