Korean War veterans get recognition

By KELLY PEDERSEN

June 26, 2000 Web posted at: 10:48 AM EDT (1448 GMT)

HOUSTON, Texas (The Houston Chronicle) -- Though long overdue, Sunday's dedication of a Korean War monument at the Houston National Cemetery was, at very least, timely.

Not since M*A*S*H -- Robert Altman's dark comedy about a hospital unit in the Korean War -- appeared in 1970, has America's "forgotten war" received greater attention than in the past month, which marks the war's 50th anniversary.

With their war sandwiched between the glory of World War II and the disenchantment of Vietnam, many of the Korean War veterans at Sunday's dedication expressed satisfaction that the war's significance is re-emerging.

The dedication featured a color guard salute, a flag ceremony and a moving bagpipe version of Amazing Grace, followed by Taps. Nearly 100 friends and loved ones of veterans gathered for the unveiling.

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South Korean Consul General Byong-Hyo Lim thanked the veterans for their sacrifices and assured them that their efforts were not in vain.

"I believe that, with the proper political and economic exchanges, the fruit of your precious blood and sweat may be just around the corner," he told the crowd. "There will be unification of the two Koreas."

The modest monument -- Houston National Cemetery rules require that no marker be more than two feet tall or two feet wide -- bears bronze insignias of the five U.S. military branches inlaid in granite.

The Lone Star Chapter of the Korean War Veterans Association unveiled the monument, the cemetery's first dealing with the Korean War.

The marker serves as an extension of the Korean War monument erected in 1997 at the state capitol in Austin to honor the 1,723 Texans killed or missing in action in Korea.

Dozens of veterans -- now mostly in their 70s -- attending the dedication paid their respects to soldiers who never returned from the effort to stop the Communist invasion.

"It was sort of a tie ... it's still going on today," said Sal Gambino, who served in the Coast Guard. "I always call it a tie that followed two big wins and preceded one great loss.

"When we returned home from Korea, there wasn't a lot of fanfare, but we never expected it, Gambino said." We knew ours wasn't a great war -- it was outshined from the beginning -- but it was a turning point."

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