More than 500 veterans and spectators gathered just west of Yellowstone Regional Airport in Cody Saturday for the unveiling of a long-awaited monument to military service: the Korean War Memorial.


Korean War Veteran Wes Meeker of Lovell, who attended Saturday’s dedication, said the memorial was the brainchild of Paul Rodriguez of Powell, who he said had “wanted to do something for a long time,” adding, “It finally went together.”


Rodriguez received support from the Korean War Veterans Association, of which he is the Cowboy Chapter president. The KWVA helped with fund-raising, and the project also received a $100,000 contribution from the Republic of Korea, represented at Saturday’s ceremony by Consul General Bon-Woo Koo and his wife, Yung Ock.


The memorial contains the names of 60 Wyoming veterans who lost their lives in the Korean War, noting that the dedication coincided over the weekend with the annual reunion of the Wyoming National Guard’s 300th Armored Field Artillery Battalion, which was activated for active duty during the Korean War. Many guardsmen from north Big Horn County served in Korea, and the 300th lost 13 soldiers, Meeker said, although none were from the local area.


Saturday’s dedication began at 10 a.m. with a flyover by a Wyoming National Guard C-130 transport plane. Lovell native Buck Wilkerson of Cody was the master of ceremonies and welcomed all to the event. After the Wyoming National Guard presented the colors, Wendy Corr of Cody sang a beautiful rendition of the U.S. National Anthem, Meeker said, followed by a recording of the Korean National Anthem.


Wilkerson recognized various dignitaries, key individuals and groups and after a welcome by Cody Mayor Roger Sedam, Wilkerson thanked the sponsors of the memorial.
Rodriguez spoke next and told about the effort to get the memorial project completed.


“Paul gave a very nice speech,” Meeker said. “He was very humble. He was so pleased to get this under way after all those years.”


Rodriguez and the Cowboy Chapter of the Korean War Veterans Association then unveiled the monument, which lists those from Wyoming killed in action and includes the words: “They fought and died in a strange land for people they didn’t know to stop the spread of communism…Freedom is not free.”


Gov. Dave Freudenthal proclaimed the Veterans Memorial Park and spoke next. The governor said he was very pleased, Meeker said, and noted that the memorial should have been done years ago. According to an account in the Cody Enterprise, Freudenthal said he grew up in Thermopolis hearing stories about the highly-decorated 300th AFA and said the memorial is “a tribute to them and Wyoming people who will always make needed sacrifices.”


The governor also thanked Koo for his support, the Enterprise reported, saying, “He showed true friendship and backed that up with financial support.”


Freudenthal obtained $300,000 in state funding for the project.


Koo spoke next, and Meeker said the consul general expressed his country’s appreciation for the sacrifices made by American veterans.


“He said the memorial represents all of the guys who came to protect their country and the country they have now is the result of our being there,” Meeker said. “He was very grateful.”


The Enterprise also noted that Koo spoke about a bright future for the Republic of Korea and the USA and said the two nations are partners with a strong alliance that has been strengthened and continues to grow 50 years after the war.


The ceremony concluded with the reading of the names of the 60 soldiers from Wyoming who died during the war, followed by a three-round rifle salute and the playing of “Taps.” Corr then led the crowd in singing “God Bless America.”


Meeker said he appreciates what the memorial means to Korean War veterans.


“There wasn’t as much recognition of the Korean War,” he said. “Books have been written calling it the lost war. I don’t know how they can say that. We have a South Korea for crying out loud. If we hadn’t been there it would be all North Korea today, no doubt about that.”


Meeker pointed out that more than 30,000 American servicemen and women were killed in the Korean War in only three years, and yet some servicemen came home to the same troubles later faced by Vietnam veterans.
“We returned to a ticker-tape parade in Seattle (after arriving at Fort Lewis),” Meeker said, “but it wasn’t that way everyplace.”


Meeker said the 300th AFA saw 805 days of combat in Korea and fired 514,036 105mm cannon rounds. The battalion received 183 Purple Heart medals, 48 Air Medals for Meritorious Achievement in Flight, 38 Bronze Star medals with a “V” for valor device for heroic action, 34 Army Commendation Medals, 25 Bronze Star medals for meritorious Achievement, 12 Silver Star medals for gallantry in action against an armed enemy, eight prisoner of war medals, seven Battle Campaign streamers, two U.S. Presidential Unit Citations, two Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citations, one U.S. Meritorious Unit Commendations and one Republic of Korea Wharang Distinguished Military Service medal with a gold star.