Bridge Dedicated To Middleboro Soldier Vandalized Before Memorial Day
MIDDLEBORO (CBS) - It's a yearly ritual of honor for veterans Bob Lessard and Paul Provencher, placing new flags on bridges in the town of Middleboro dedicated to local soldiers killed in action. "It means somebody gave up his blood, his life. You have to respect that," said Lessard.
But it was disrespect discovered this week when a sign was found defaced with graffiti. Black spray paint covering the name of Army Sgt. Leo Forcier, killed in Germany in 1945 by a shell fired from a tank. The bridge was dedicated to him in 1979. "I was very angry, I was really upset," said Lessard an Air Force veteran.
"To have somebody do this it had to be somebody who didn't realize the significance. Maybe a young person trying to make a statement," said Provencher, Middleboro's Veterans' Services Officer.
Twenty five bridges in town bear the names of the deceased. Every Memorial Day they are adorned with new flags, along with the grave-sites of military veterans. Forcier's name is one of 26 Middleboro men who served in World War II listed at the town's war memorial. All poignant reminders of service.
"When we see the sign we know that person gave his life," said Mary Standish, a Vietnam veteran. She will be among those unveiling a new memorial to females in the town on Memorial Day.
It's an active community of veterans that takes the vandalism personally. "You wonder if it was their mother or father or grandfather, would they want somebody else to do it to their family," said Standish.
The town will make a request with the state Department of Transportation to have the sign replaced altogether.