The Town of Surfside Beach was the first community along the Grand Strand to erect a Veterans Memorial. The project was initiated by councilmember Sammy Truett, who also helped with the design, and constructed by then councilmember P. L. Mabry in 2002.
Services are held twice annually at the memorial. The Veterans Day Service is held every November 11th at 2:00 p.m. After presentation of the Colors, active duty members and veterans are recognized. Guest speakers are veterans that share their experiences from their military days.
The Memorial Day Service is at 2:30 p.m. The service opens with a presentation of the Colors, recognition of Veterans, a guest speaker and then at 3:00 p.m. the National Moment of Silence is observed to remember those who paid the ultimate price for our freedom.
With a rich history starting at the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, Veterans are honored because of their selfless service to our country and our freedoms.
How you can help continue the tradition:
1. Say “Thank You”.
2. Offer your home repair skills to a veteran or military family.
3. Volunteer at a local organization that serves our vets like South Strand Helping Hands (http://www.southstrandhelpinghand. org) or Canine Angels (http://ca-nineangelsusa.org)
4. Deliver a meal or care packages to veterans.
5. Help a veteran tell their story through a project such as the Veteran’s History Project. You can download a VHP field kit from the Library of Congress website (http://www.loc.gov/vets/).
6. Visit serve.gov and use keyword “veterans” to find more opportunities to serve our nation’s veterans.
Learn More If you are interested in recognizing or honoring a service member, or would like more in-formation about the Memorial, please contact Events Supervisor Debbie Ellis, 843.650.9548 or email dellis@surfsidebeach.org.
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