Lance Cpl. William La Marr “Billy” Tanner, Sgt. Robert George “Bobby” Pflasterer, Pfc. Paul Ross Savacool Jr., Spc. Carl Olson, Spc. Rel Rivago, Staff Sgt. Bryan Bolander and Spc. Ken Casica.
On Monday, their names were spoken in tribute to them and the many heroes who’ve given their lives in service to their country.
“This great country would not be what it is if it were not for their sacrifice and their courage,” said Augusta Mayor Garnett Johnson at the CSRA Memorial Day Observance hosted by the Augusta Chapter of the Military Order of the World Wars, near the Veterans of All Wars monument on Broad Street.
Johnson, who graduated from Butler High School in 1987, chose to honor three of Butler’s alumni who died in Vietnam.
Tanner died at the age of 22 on March 15, 1969; Pflasterer was 20 when he was killed on July 5, 1967; and Savacool was 20 when he died on Aug. 8, 1968.
U.S. Rep. Rick Allen (R-Ga.), who also spoke at the ceremony, said Memorial Day has personal meaning for him. The son of a World War II veteran, he went to high school with Olson, who was killed in 1970. He also mentioned two other classmates who were injured in Vietnam. Allen played football with Larry Price, who was shot in Vietnam, and Sonny Jones, who lost part of a leg.
Maj. Gen. Paul Stanton, commanding general of the Cyber Center of Excellence and Fort Eisenhower, also remembered friends.
“I tell their story,” he said of Rivago, Bolander and Casica.
They were men “who led their soldiers with care, compassion and bravery while facing daily attacks on every patrol and improvised explosive devices on every route,” he said. “They were team leaders that did not come home alive, but they ensured their soldiers did.
Most of the people attending the commemoration had some type of connection to a fallen servicemember. Some were fellow veterans; some were Gold Star families, meaning a family member had died during service. The names and faces of loved ones or fallen comrades are “etched” possibly even “scarred” into the hearts and minds of those gathered Monday, he said.
But not everyone has that connection or is aware of the real reason for Memorial Day.
“For us, what change do we need to drive to broaden and deepen awareness to preserve the memories of our fallen and their sacrifices for our freedoms, to change the significance and meaning of Memorial Day for our population in the mighty United States of America?” he asked.
Charmain Z. Brackett, the publisher of Augusta Good News and Inspiring: Women of Augusta, has covered Augusta’s news for 35 years. Reach her at charmain@augustagoodnews.com. Sign up for the newsletter here.
