Tom Daws, president of the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 83, the national organization's Delaware chapter, said the ceremony honoring the 30 deceased Delaware military men and women and their Gold Star Families will be the first of its kind in the state - and long overdue.
"The families don't get the recognition or remembrances that the casualties get," he said. "It's time that we recognize these families that sacrificed their loved ones."
The Gold Star Families refers to a gold pin given to the immediate family members of fallen U.S. servicemen and -women.
The event will begin at noon on the east side of Legislative Hall, a short distance from the Old Dover Days festivities.
Mr. Daws said 30 2-by-4-foot canvas commemorative banners have been made up to honor each dead service member.
Judy Campbell, the chapter's chairwoman for Gold Star Families, said the goal initially was to only honor families of casualties from the present Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts. However, it has been expanded to include all the known Delaware Gold Star Families and includes fallen soldiers from the Vietnam War, and conflicts in Beirut and elsewhere.
The ceremony also will feature a Battlefield Cross Ceremony, a volley of shots and the playing of taps. Members of the Delaware National Guard, students from the Delaware Military Academy and Sen. Thomas R. Carper, D-Del., also will participate in the service.
One of the banners will honor former Dover resident Jarrett B. Thompson, 27, who was killed during a tour in Iraq with the Army's 946th Transport Company in September 2003.
Another will pay tribute to former Seaford resident Lance Cpl. Richard "Rick" Zachary James, who was killed May 13, 2006, by hostile fire in Ramadi, Iraq. He was 20.
Sgt. Zachary's mother, Carol James, said remembrances such as Saturday's mean a lot to her and her family.
"Sometimes I feel guilty accepting awards on behalf of my son since he was the hero, not me, but I'm so glad our state wants to remember him with us," she said. "The general public, no matter what side of the war issue they agree with, needs to know that people die defending their freedoms and they are heroes."
"It means so much to know that many people believe in, appreciate, and remember what my son did for them."
Ms. Campbell, who lost a brother in Vietnam, has made it a personal mission to raise support for Gold Star Families.
"Our goal is to bring awareness because so many people don't know what the gold star means," she said. "I'm striving to bring a national awareness, and where better to start than in the First State?"
The practice of giving out the pins and their significance has become diluted since their inception during World War II, Ms. Campbell said.
While only 10 pins are to be given out to immediate family members at the time of death of the fallen soldier, she said some funeral homes will now give out pins to everyone in attendance.
In other cases, Ms. Campbell said she has heard of stories where family members were denied pins and instead purchased them at garage sales or on eBay.
The New Castle County resident was also instrumental in the recent passing of state legislation to allow the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue gold star license plates to qualified family members.
While some of the Gold Star Families, such as hers, lost their loved ones many years ago, Ms. Campbell said it doesn't mean the loss has stopped hurting.
"For people to just assume someone has died and you just move on with your life ... you don't forget ... you always have an empty place at your table and you always have an empty place in your heart," she said. "The least we can do is remember the families who gave them to us."
Hopes are to expand from the initial remembrance on Saturday by placing the commemorative banners in Dover and other places throughout the state.
Mr. Daws said he has already received permission to place the 30 banners on utility poles along U.S. 13 in Dover from State Street to Kings Highway. However, he said the chapter is in need of qualified people to volunteer to hang the signs.
Anyone interested may call Mr. Daws at 738-8875.
Staff writer George Mast can be reached at 741-8233 or gmast@newszap.com.