On Saturday afternoon, members of the veteran community gathered at Litchfield’s Every War Memorial for a chance to honor the soldiers killed in Beirut in 1983. On Oct. 23, 1983, two truck bombs struck barracks housing U.S. and French troops who were in Beirut on a peacekeeping mission during the Lebanese Civil War.

The Connecticut ceremony was created to honor the 241 marines, sailors, and soldiers who lost their lives while serving with the multi-nation peacekeeping forces in Beirut, Lebanon. Of that number, six soldiers were from Connecticut, David Seelye, chairman of the CT Beirut Memorial Ceremony, said he started the event in 1997 to continually recognize the soldiers for their service.

Greg Smith, senior vice commander of the Connecticut Veteran of Foreign Wars, and State Rep. Jay Case, R-Winchester, gave speeches and presented the surviving veterans with a citation from the House of Representatives.  [Link]