Army Sgt.Ramon Guitard, 26, a Purple Heart recipient, enlisted in the Army in July, 2001. He lost his legs in Iraq from a roadside bomb. With the upcoming annual Veterans Day, Americans throughout the United States pause to remember and pay tribute to patriots and wounded warriors for their valor and bravery in the line of duty.

Every year, the recognition is on or near Nov. 11.

The Veterans Day parade in Columbia will be Nov. 11, beginning at 10:50 am in downtown Columbia. The parade route starts at the Laurel and Sumter Street intersection and runs south on Sumter Street to Gervais Street. The parade honors all veterans with a procession of high school marching bands, floats, military vehicles and equipment, military marching installations, and a flyover.

The Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917, with the U.S. military.

Retired Col. Charles P. Murray Jr. is one of 21 living WWII Congressional Medal of Honor winners. The Purple Heart differs from other decorations in that an individual is not “recommended” for the honor. He or she is entitled to it upon meeting specific criteria.

Notable recipients include actors Charles Bronson, Lee Marvin, Audie Murphy; writers Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Rod Sterling; President John F. Kennedy; Sen. John McCain, U.S. Army General Wesley Clark; Colin Powell; and Sen. John Kerry.

The Congressional Medal of Honor is awarded to servicemen and women who distinguish themselves by their gallantry in action. There are 95 recipients still living: from World War II, 21; from the Korean War, 15; from Vietnam, 59. The Congressional Medal of Honor Society is located in South Carolina. The Medal of Honor Museum is in Mt. Pleasant at Patriot’s Point in Charleston Harbor.

Retired Army Col. Charles P. Murray Jr., who lives in Columbia, is one of the 21 World War II Congressional Medal of Honor recipients. Murray was among 35 or 40 heroes who attended an appreciation day at the Rusty Anchor/Lighthouse Marina this summer..

Command Sergeant Major Rico Dottin, stationed at Ft. Jackson, organized the event for Purple Heart recipients and their families. Lighthouse Marina Manager Stan Jones offered free boat rides and the facility. The Fort Jackson Sergeant Majors’ Association provided food and beverages.

“Stan’s involvement had a major part in this event,” Dottin said. “As soon as I talked to Stan about the event, he was ecstatic about the idea. His past experience in the military (U.S. Marine Corps) gave him an appreciation for the men and women who serve our country.”

Dottin’s duties at Ft. Jackson involve basic training. Currently, he is assigned as a Command Sergeant Major for a basic training battalion. He has served in the Army for 23 years and spent most of his career in the Army stationed at Ft. Bragg.

Dottin’s idea was to bring together these veterans to share stories. The goal was to have the event before the start of school so that children and grandchildren could join family members and be part of the event.

Also, the Command Sergeant Majors of Ft. Jackson wanted to express their nation’s gratitude to the men and women who have demonstrated their sacrifices by fighting for our nation’s freedom, he said.

“There are many men and women who have served our country and have never had the opportunity to tell their stories. “ he said. “It is quite a humbling experience when you take 10 minutes to listen to their stories. Most of them never chose to join the Armed Services. Many of them were involuntarily told to report to duty and deployed with little or no training.”

The stories need to be told because “it’s so easy for someone who’s never served to take it for granted,” he said. “ It’s important for folks to know. I know what it’s like. My wife and I spent three years apart when I was in Iraq.”

And tell their stories, they did.

Murray, 88, who retired July 31, 1973, after more than 30 years of service, has been married to his wife, Anne, for 67 years. Both their sons served in Viet Nam, and their daughter is married to a former sailor.

Murray, then a 1st Lieutenant, received his citation for “displaying supreme courage and heroic initiative near Kaysersberg, France, on Dec. 16, 1944, while leading a platoon into enemy territory. He was wounded in eight places that day.

There were 200 Germans firing all sorts of weapons. Murray crawled ahead of his platoon, killing 20 Germans, wounding others and disorganized the enemy’s ranks. He captured 10 Germans in foxholes. The 11th, threw a grenade at him, causing eight injuries. He refused to retreat to the rear until he knew his men were safe.

He was presented the Medal of Honor July 5, 1945, in Saltzberg.

The Medal of Honor is “The No. 1 military award – the highest award,” he said.

Army Sgt.Ramon Guitard, 26, a Purple Heart recipient, enlisted in the Army in July, 2001. He was injured Oct. 9, 2004, in Iraq, while sitting in the front seat of a jeep. A roadside bomb hit him. Guittard lost his legs, was paralyzed on the left side and in a medically induced coma for a time. He also suffered a stroke. He was a patient for a year and a half at Walter Reid Medical Center.

“I had a lot of injuries,” he said. “They didn’t expect me to live. I’m defying it. I’m moving on.”

Guittard and his wife, Melissa, have three children. He used to run marathons in New York, Florida, Louisiana. Now, he drives, flies, and swims. And he is a motivational speaker, talking to church groups, in schools, colleges, and wherever he is invited.

“You move forward,” he said. “You do the best you can. I wish I were still in the military. “

He likes to hear the stories of other veterans.

“It’s history,” he said. I enjoy life. I don’t have my legs, but I don’t want any pity. You can’t change yesterday, but you can change tomorrow.”

Dottin said such stories are powerful and those in attendance gave positive comments.

He said another reason for the appreciation day was to facilitate the opportunity to bring together members of the Ft. Jackson community, the Columbia, SC area military retirees, and those who support the nation’s heroic men and women.

The event also included the Command Sergeants’ Majors Association from Ft. Jackson, who are in the process of making a donation to the Ladies Auxiliary. The auxiliary does many great things for disabled veterans.

Dottin said he thinks the event is “going to be unforgettable for those who attended. Listening to the stories of those who have served are part of the reason this is such a remarkable country and will never be forgotten. In the future, I believe this event will happen again, and it will draw a larger crowd.”

The day selected for the Purple Heart Appreciation Day is not set in stone, Dottin said, and was the first of its kind this year on Lake Murray.

“We certainly don’t plan for it to be the last,” he said. “We support Veterans Day, Patriots Day, and any other day dedicated to our nation’s veterans. Wounded warriors will always hold a special place in our nation’s walls of freedom, and you will be able to listen to the echoes throughout the land. They are everywhere, and we usually are not looking for them, but on the day that Stan Jones provided the setting for them to come together, the ones who showed their faces were the ones who knew the importance of that event.”