On Saturday, May 19, members of the Mississippi Dept. of the Military Order of the Purple Heart gathered at Lake Tiak O’Khata for their annual banquet. It is a time for Purple Heart recipients to gather for a time of fellowship and remembrance of shared experiences in battle. The Purple Heart is awarded to those service members who are wounded in combat.
The banquet opened with the presentation of colors by the Neshoba Central High School JROTC, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Senior Vice-Commander Holis McArthur presided over the event, and the guest speaker for the evening was Winston County native, Paul Breazeale.
Breazeale was born in Winston County, but grew up in Neshoba County, and is a 1963 graduate of Neshoba Central High School. He received both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Mississippi State University, and serves on the Mississippi Ethics Commission, and is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Hinds Community College. He is co-founder and partner in the Jackson CPA firm of Breazeale, Saunders & O’Neil, Ltd.
Breazeale spoke to the gathering about the United States Constitution, stating that everyone there had taken an oath to defend and uphold the Constitution, but most had never read it. He pointed out the document took four months to write and was written in secret, but is one of the most powerful documents to ever be written. Breazeale further explained the powers enumerated to each branch of government, and what they are allowed and not allowed to do.
Following a meal, flags which have flown over the Capitol in Washington D.C. were awarded to a number of those present. This was followed by the naming of new officers for the Order of the Purple Heart and its Auxiliary which is made up of wives of Purple Heart recipients. The evening concluded with the awarding of door prizes.
Richard Jones, a Vietnam veteran who served in 1967-1968, stated that the banquets are very important to veterans of that era as they fought in an unpopular war, and did not receive the type of support that veterans of other wars received. A large majority of servicemen present at the banquet fought in Vietnam.
