Editor’s Note: Richard Annino delivered this speech at the annual Haddam Memorial Day ceremony on May 27, 2024. It is with great appreciation and respect that we print his speech in its entirety here.
By Richard Annino
I have had the honor and privilege to stand before you every Memorial Day from 1972 until 2022. I have heard numerous individuals give the Memorial Day address each year and have wanted to do so myself, but haven’t had the courage. There have been times during past services that I have become too emotional to continue and am afraid I won’t be able to finish today, so please bear with me.
I know personally seven veterans who gave their lives during the Vietnam War and whose names are engraved on the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington, DC. I went to school in Haddam with Jimmy Manning and Ray Contino, who both lost their lives in Vietnam. Jimmy was killed in July of 1969 and Ray was killed in May of 1970 and both served with the United States Army. They are the last two from Haddam who were killed in action during wartime.
I enlisted in the United States Navy in March of 1966, and left for Vietnam in October of 1969 with a squadron aboard the Aircraft Carrier USS Ranger. We arrived at the Tonkin Gulf off the coast of Vietnam in November of 1969 and between November and January of 1970 had three aircraft shot down, each with a two person crew. I remember their six names like it was yesterday: Collins, Quinn, Fryer, Deuter, Brooks and Richards. Richards was rescued from the jungle by a search and rescue crew and went on to complete his naval career. Collins, Quinn, Fryer, Deuter and Brooks were all originally listed as missing in action, later updated to killed in action, bodies not recovered. Brooks’s body was recovered 12 years later in 1982, returned home and buried at sea by his family.
The town of Haddam has fifty-two veterans who have been killed in action during the various wars and two of them are listed as Missing in Action, one from World War II and one from the Korean War. They too have had their status changed to Killed in Action, body not recovered. Chief Carpenter’s Mate Erwin Parmelee was born on 14 October 1900, enlisted in the United States Navy on 18 March 1920 and was stationed at Pearl Harbor from 31 December 1939 and was there when the Japanese attacked on 7 December 1941. He was in the Navy for more than 21 years when Pearl Harbor was attacked.
On 30 November 1942 he was listed as lost at sea while attempting to repair his torpedoed ship. One year later, 1 December 1943, he was declared killed in action, body not recovered. His name is on the Tablet of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery, Fort Bonifacio, Manila, Philippines. His family has placed a headstone in his memory in the Haddam Cemetery.
Corporal Robert Blakely, United States Army, is Missing in Action in Korea. He reportedly was captured on 12 February 1951 and died as a prisoner of war on 30 April 1951.His remains were not recovered. His name is also on the Tablet of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery, Fort Bonifacio, Manila Philippines. Corporal Blakely was born on 02 September 1932 and was only eighteen years old when he died. He was seventeen years old when he enlisted.
I share this with you today to remind everyone that not all our veterans who have been killed during wartime have made it home to their families. The sad reality is that there are many still Missing in Action, bodies not recovered. I know officially that four of the six from the squadron I served with are all listed as Killed in Action, bodies not recovered.
To me, they are still Missing in Action and their bodies WILL be recovered and returned home to their families. The black flag on my left, the POW/MIA flag or Prisoner of War/ Missing in Action flag, is often forgotten on this day. The bodies of these veterans have not been returned home to their families for a proper burial, thus providing closure for them. I can’t imagine not knowing the final resting place of a loved one, as I often wonder where my four Missing in Action shipmates are, especially today.
For me, I purchased four engraved bricks with their names on them, plus one Killed in Action engraved brick and placed them with my family in the Museum’s Memorial Walk. This way, I know that they are not alone and are with friends. On this day I pay my respects to them, and all veterans who have given their lives in the service of our country. They will never be forgotten. I don’t know how many veterans are officially listed as Killed in Action, body not recovered, but what I do know is this: ONE IS ONE TOO MANY!
In closing there is one last fact I want to share with you this Memorial Day. There are thousands of veterans buried in American cemeteries worldwide who share the same name. That name: UNKNOWN. Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia alone has 4,000-plus buried in its hallowed ground with that name. The American Battle Monuments Commission includes twenty-six cemeteries worldwide and nine of those have 2,372 UNKNOWN, including 307 in Normandy, France.
That is 6,372 veterans who made the ultimate sacrifice, buried in a small percentage of our cemeteries under the name UNKNOWN. I do not have the total number. When we leave today’s Memorial Day service, and every day for that matter, let us not forget ALL of our veterans who have made the ultimate sacrifice: The Killed in Action, the Missing in Action, the Unknowns, and who all have not come home. Thank you.
