FLAG RAISING CEREMONY HELD IN COALDALE

Remembering the 52nd anniversary of the start of the Vietnam War and all Americans injured or killed in war, members of the Panther Valley JROTC and members of the “Friends of Coaldale High” held a flag raising ceremony outside the Coaldale Complex (old Coaldale High School) this morning (Tuesday, April 7, 2015).
“Vietnam was America’s longest war,” previously said Korean War veteran William Gaddes of the “Friends of Coaldale High,” who purchased the large 15-foot by 25-foot Garrison flag. “The war cost the lives of nearly 60,000 men and women.”
Gaddes, a Coaldale native now living in Lake Hauto, said he flew 80 combat missions above North Korea and served with the South Korean Navy during the war.
Veterans organizations represented during the ceremony were Coaldale American Legion Post 170, Coaldale VFW Post 6982, Tamaqua/McAdoo AMVETS Post 1, Tamaqua American Legion Post 173 and others.
“Events like this show heart, compassion and resolve of our country,” added Gaddes. “We shall overcome and become even more watchful.”