Never Forget

I believe that God gives each of us a purpose, assignment. I thought my purpose was to be a good Mom. I suppose He gives us more than one purpose however; I believe that He gives us one assignment. 

I met Karl July 10, 1997. The first time he took me to his house, I saw a framed box with medals. I asked him about them and he said he never looked at it. It was a gift from someone. I asked him when and where he served. He didn’t want to discuss this so I left it alone. 

Karl received an invitation to the 30th annual Landclearers reunion which was being held at Fort Worth. I asked him if he wanted to go. He was between yes and no for a few weeks. I could see that he was struggling with this decision. He finally decided to go so I bought the airline tickets. The night before we were going to leave, he decided that he couldn’t do it. The next morning, he said he wanted to go. One hour before we were leaving to go to the airport, he said he couldn’t do it. He decided he wanted to go just in time to make our flight. 

He had not seen any of his Army buddies since he came home in 1971. He was very anxious. He didn’t know who would be there. He didn’t know who had survived the war. 

I saw grown men crying and embracing each other. It was a very emotional experience. 

I bought Karl a Vietnam veteran Tee shirt but it hung in his closet. You see, at the reunion, he was with his brothers. However; he was uncomfortable wearing anything that had Vietnam veteran in the public. 

I watched my husband as he experienced flashbacks and calmed him when he had nightmares. I kept thinking about him struggling and I prayed, asking God to show me how I could help him. I had this feeling tugging at my heart. I was the Human Resources Director at Amicalola Falls State Park and Lodge. I asked my boss, Bob Bolz, if I could honor our veterans on Veteran’s Day. He replied of course!

We bought white paper bags, sand and candles. With the help of the staff and employees, we wrote names of family and friends names on the bag and placed them from the bottom to the top of the mountain. We lighted the candles and stood by our veterans who we were honoring. It was so beautiful and it helped many of us get closure. 

I began working at the Dawson County Chamber of Commerce in September 2003. Veterans Day was coming up so I asked my boss, the Chamber President, if Dawsonville did anything for Veterans Day. She said they did not. I told her that I felt a need to do something for our veterans. She said okay and offered her support. 

I met several veteran’s on Veteran’s Day, one being Larry Freeland. I told him that I would like to form a group to discuss how we could honor our veterans. He said he would like to participate. We had our first meeting in March 2004. We called our committee Veterans Affairs of Dawson County. We had volunteers who shared my vision. Rosalind Chambers, Amy Reeves, William Sexton (Bill) and of course Larry Freeland. 

We decided that we didn’t have enough time to do a Memorial Day service so we concentrated our efforts for Veterans Day. The first year, we had very few Vietnam veterans in the parade. I saw many Vietnam veterans who came to “watch” the parade. I asked Karl that night as to why they would line the streets but not participate in the parade. He told me about how horribly they were treated when they came home and they were anxious to see how the Vietnam veterans were treated in the parade. 

The next morning, I was surprised to see Karl wearing the Vietnam veteran Tee shirt that had been hanging in his closet for years. After being together for seven years, Karl began speaking about being in Vietnam. I was surprised to learn that he served three tours! I asked him what made him want to discuss his service and he said he felt the beginning of a healing process from the Veterans Day banquet, ceremony and parade. He was so moved by all the people who came and lined the streets shouting “Welcome Home “ and “Thank you for your service “. 

A couple of days later, I had to go to the courthouse to get some papers notarized. Gunny Moore was the officer who screened everyone before they were allowed to enter. He told me that our Veterans Day celebration had begun a healing process for him. That was confirmation from the Lord letting me know that this was my assignment. 

The Veterans Affairs of Dawson County became a nonprofit organization and I served as president for eight years before I became legally blind. But in those eight years, I met so many wonderful veterans, most were Vietnam veterans. I’ve witnessed them wearing clothing and caps with Vietnam Veterans logo’s and branches. Many of them have thanked me for what I had done to bring honor, respect and yes, even healing. However; I have given all the praise and glory to my Lord and Savior for my assignment and I have told my veterans that the Lord is the One who they should praise. 

This Veteran’s Day will be the twentieth anniversary of when we first started celebrating and honoring our veterans. Due to life’s circumstances, I am no longer able to serve on the VADC. My love and respect for my veterans has not diminished as I continue to support, honor and respect all veterans who served honorably through prayer. My prayer is that all veterans and their families have or will go through the healing process. I thank God for giving me this assignment and I want any veteran who has been blessed through this journey to give all the praise to the Lord. I am just His servant.

Pamela D. Hamalainen

April 8, 2024