To the Editor:
In April 1987 the Yadkin County Veteran’s Monument was dedicated at the Courthouse in Yadkinville for servicemen who had lost their lives during active duty. This was a momentous occasion and well attended and done with the best intentions. This monument no matter how visible it is to the public, right in front of the courthouse in the middle of town, is virtually forgotten. It seems no one really cares about it anymore since the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars have all their memorial services at the Yadkin County Park.
Still the Veteran’s Monument is important because it list the names of men, some that have no markers any place else, and these are the names of men who gave their lives for our country, our state and our county.
As I said before the monument was done with best of intentions, but even as it was dedicated there were names left off it. For the past eight years I have been researching and writing a book on Yadkin County Veterans from the Revolutionary War until 2022, and I have found to this point 173 veterans missing from the monument. I know a lot of this is due to lack of resources for research during the 1980s and we have more resources today.
As a citizen of Yadkin County and a veteran myself, I would love to see these men added to the monument. There is limited space on the monument today, so it will have to be added to someway and this will take money, but I believe with the sentiment toward veterans today the money could be raised from the community, from churches, organizations, and businesses who support veteran causes.
If you are interested in seeing these men honored by adding their names my suggestion would be to get in touch with a Yadkin County commissioner or a representative of the American Legion or Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and let them know how you feel about it.
Edward Gregory, Jr.
Yadkinville