MASON COUNTY, WV (WOWK) – A local community honored a special step in the building process for a memorial in Mason County.

The Mason County community dedicated a new statue of Medal of Honor Recipient and Mason County native Staff Sgt. Jimmy Stewart. The statue will serve as the centerpiece of the memorial.

Stewart was killed in action while holding back enemy forces on May 18, 1966, during the Vietnam War. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in 1967 for giving his own life to protect his wounded squad members against an enemy platoon. The Congressional Medal of Honor Society’s website states, “As the full force of the platoon-sized attack struck his lone position, he fought like a man possessed.”

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Stewart’s son says the new memorial will help honor all of the county’s veterans.

“You remember that not everyone gets to come home. Some people get to come home, but a lot of people don’t,” said John Stewart. “And this memorial will honor them and help let them not be forgotten.”

The memorial committee also unveiled the service medallions and additional service monuments during Monday’s ceremony. The service monuments list the names of those killed in action, held as prisoners of war, or are still missing across all conflicts.

This completes Phase One of the project, and Phase Two will begin next. Once complete, a portion of the memorial will also list the names of all honorably discharged Mason County veterans.

The memorial is taking shape because of the generosity of the community – whether financially or through labor – as they continue to come together in so many ways to help ensure the men and women who have served Mason County and their country are never forgotten.

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