Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Derek Harkins | GULFPORT, Miss. (Sept. 22, 2023) Corporal Connor Hazelrigg, assigned to Marine Forces...... read more read more
GULFPORT, Miss. - Naval Construction Battalion Center Gulfport hosted the 8th annual Bells Across America for Fallen Service Members ceremony at the installation’s training hall Sept. 22, 2023.
Each year, Navy installations around the world observe Bells Across America, named for a ceremonial tolling of the bells to recognize the sacrifices of those who lost their lives while serving in the United States Armed Forces.
“As the bell tolls and we all reaffirm our commitment to our fallen service members, I invite those in uniform to reflect upon and reaffirm their own sense of service,” said Capt. Ana Franco, commanding officer of NCBC Gulfport. “The shipmates we remember this morning were never rung ashore, but each left us with a legacy.”
Uniformed and civilian members of the Department of Defense joined with family members, or Gold Star families, to commemorate the occasion.
“To our Gold Star families, your loved ones are never forgotten and neither are you,” said Franco. “While we do not presume to understand your personal grief, please know you are not alone. We grieve alongside you, and we remember your loved ones and the legacies they left with us.”
NCBC Gulfport coordinated the event with the Navy Gold Star Program. Since October 2014, Navy Gold Star has promoted long-term resiliency through support and resources, comradery between the Navy and Gold Star families, and special events and remembrance ceremonies.
According to Megan Gibbs, the coordinator for the Navy Region Southeast Gold Star Program, Bells Across America started at Naval Air Station Jacksonville in 2016.
“Since its inception, the event has grown from an intimate gathering within the Fleet and Family Support Centers to an all hands installation ceremony,” said Gibbs. “What started with a few installations across the US, has grown to 40 installations worldwide.”
Chief petty officer selectees assisted NCBC Gulfport in honoring these families and the sacrifices of their lost loved ones. The participants read the names of 80 fallen service members and rang a bell in honor of each of them.
“This is the second year that the chief selects are participating in reading the names,” said Gibbs. “This is a testimony to their character and dedication to history and tradition.”
This history extends back to May of 1918, when President Woodrow Wilson approved a recommendation by the Women’s Committee of National Defenses for women to place a gold star on a black-cloth armband to raise awareness of those who were lost in World War I. In a letter from Wilson to this committee that was published in the New York Times on May 26, 1918, the idea of the Gold Star mother was established.
“Since then, millions of families have tragically traded in blue stars for heroes fighting for America for gold stars of the fallen, a badge of honor they wished they would never have to hold,” said NCBC Gulfport Command Master Chief Helen Daniels, who served as the master of ceremonies for the event.
This custom eventually led to the establishment of Gold Star Mother’s Day in 1936, which became Gold Star Families Day in 2009, recognizing the family members of those who have lost their lives while serving in the U.S. Military. According to Gibbs, Bells Across America helps Navy Gold Star to show those spouses, children, parents and siblings that their lost loved ones are remembered.
“It is important to ensure that these families understand they are not forgotten by their Navy family,” said Gibbs.
After the chief selectees read each name, the bell rang four more times in recognition of all others who have passed away while serving in the U.S. Military.
“Gold Star families, on behalf of a grateful nation, it is with sincere appreciation for the exemplary service of your loved ones and their supreme sacrifice that we honor and remember them and you,” said Franco. “May this ceremony exemplify our never-ending care, concern, and fidelity, and may it remind us that freedom isn’t free.”
For more information about Navy Gold Star and Bells Across America for Fallen Service Members, visit www.navygoldstar.com.
| Date Taken: | 09.22.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 09.22.2023 16:04 |
| Story ID: | 454121 |
| Location: | GULFPORT, MISSISSIPPI, US |
| Web Views: | 71 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, NCBC Gulfport Honors the Fallen, by PO1 Derek Harkins, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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