LYNCHBURG, Va. – A group of central Virginia veterans honored Purple Heart Day with a ceremony at Lynchburg's most visible veterans' monument.
Lynchburg's chapter of the Miltary Order of the Purple Heart placed a wreath on Monument Terrace in honor of Purple Heart veterans. More than a dozen people showed up to the ceremony and many were veterans with Purple Hearts of their own.
The survivors say they wanted the day to be more about the veterans who did not survive in war.
"We don't want to be recognized just for our wounds or for our sacrifice," said Steve Bozeman, a Marine who received a Purple Heart for his service during the Vietnam War. "We always want to remember the ones who didn't make it back. In my case, that's 58,000 Vietnam vets."
A Purple Heart is the military's oldest honor. It is given to veterans seriously wounded or killed in the line of duty.