Central New York Pearl Harbor survivor Larry Parry, of Baldwinsville, makes his first return to the USS Arizona for the first time in 73 years. In a moment of reflection with rose petals in hand and the recent loss of his wife weighing heavy in his heart, the 94-year-old Parry was overcome with vivid memories of Dec. 7 as though it was yesterday. With a salute and a prayer, the petals were swept away by the wind, leaving all in witness sobbing as a united unit. A powerful tribute we will never forget. (Melissa Findley 2014, The Greatest Generations Foundation )
Central New York Pearl Harbor survivor Larry Parry was overwhelmed with emotion Sunday as he returned to the USS Arizona for the first time in 73 years.
A photographer captured Parry, 94, of Baldwinsville, at a national ceremony at Pearl Harbor to commemorate the 1941 Japanese bombing that thrust the United States into World War II.
"In a moment of reflection with rose petals in hand and the recent loss of his wife weighing heavy in his heart, Larry was overcome with vivid memories of Dec. 7 as though it was yesterday," the photographer, Melissa Findley, of The Greatest Generations Foundation, wrote.
Parry, an Army motor mechanic stationed on the island Oahu, was playing football when the bombs and torpedoes fell.
He was sent to Pearl Harbor after the bombings; the devastation was heart-breaking, he has said.
Parry and another Central New York Pearl Harbor survivor, Edward Stone, 91, of Syracuse, were among Pearl Harbor survivors and World War II veterans at the national ceremony Sunday. Their trip is sponsored by the Greatest Generation Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting recognition and respect for war veterans.
"With a salute and a prayer, the petals were swept away by the wind, leaving all in witness sobbing as a united unit," Findley wrote. "A powerful tribute we will never forget."'
By Catie O'Toole
on December 07, 2014
A photographer captured Parry, 94, of Baldwinsville, at a national ceremony at Pearl Harbor to commemorate the 1941 Japanese bombing that thrust the United States into World War II.
"In a moment of reflection with rose petals in hand and the recent loss of his wife weighing heavy in his heart, Larry was overcome with vivid memories of Dec. 7 as though it was yesterday," the photographer, Melissa Findley, of The Greatest Generations Foundation, wrote.
Parry, an Army motor mechanic stationed on the island Oahu, was playing football when the bombs and torpedoes fell.
He was sent to Pearl Harbor after the bombings; the devastation was heart-breaking, he has said.
Parry and another Central New York Pearl Harbor survivor, Edward Stone, 91, of Syracuse, were among Pearl Harbor survivors and World War II veterans at the national ceremony Sunday. Their trip is sponsored by the Greatest Generation Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting recognition and respect for war veterans.
"With a salute and a prayer, the petals were swept away by the wind, leaving all in witness sobbing as a united unit," Findley wrote. "A powerful tribute we will never forget."'
By Catie O'Toole
on December 07, 2014
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