Vietnam was Carrie Ruud’s generation’s war, and the Republican state senator from Breezy Point still has two bracelets representing classmates who were missing in action.

“Don’t forget. Share the names; share the stories,” Ruud said.

Ruud was the guest speaker at the Memorial Day service hosted Monday, May 31, by the Pequot Lakes American Legion Post and Jenkins Veterans of Foreign Wars Post. Addressing a crowd at the Pequot Lakes School auditorium, Ruud pulled both bracelets from her wrist to read the inscriptions. She's kept the bracelets to never forget the people.

She dedicated her speech to her older brother, George, who served and suffered from cancer after the war. However, he lived a full life and died last November not from cancer, but in a sky-diving accident.

Ruud’s parents both served in World War II, and she shared the story of her husband’s best friend from childhood whom she never got the chance to meet. Her husband, Dick Rostad, and his best friend, Elroy Harworth, both enlisted to serve their country. Harworth’s plane was shot down May 31, 1966, in Vietnam when he was just 24 years old, and he was missing in action for 20 years.

Ruud read many names and where those names are located on the Vietnam Memorial Wall. She reiterated that we must share the names and the stories.

Area communities where traditional Memorial Day services took place include Pequot Lakes, Nisswa, Crosslake, Pine River and Backus.

Nancy Vogt may be reached at 218-855-5877 or nancy.vogt@pineandlakes.com. Follow her on Facebook and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/@PEJ_Nancy.

1/7: A family walks through the Our Savior's Lutheran Church cemetery in Pequot Lakes, where flags adorn veterans' graves, on Memorial Day, Monday, May 31. Nancy Vogt / Echo Journal

2/7: State Sen. Carrie Ruud, R-Breezy Point, talks at a Memorial Day service Monday, May 31, in the Pequot Lakes High School auditorium. Nancy Vogt / Echo Journal

3/7: A row of Pequot Lakes American Legion Post 49 members listens during the Memorial Day service Monday, May 31, in the Pequot Lakes High School auditorium. Nancy Vogt / Echo Journal

4/7: The Pledge of Allegiance is recited at the Pequot Lakes Memorial Day service Monday, May 31, in the high school auditorium. Nancy Vogt / Echo Journal

5/7: People follow the Pequot Lakes American Legion Color Guard to Sibley Lake Park in Pequot Lakes for the Naval ceremony at Sibley Lake on Memorial Day, Monday, May 31. Nancy Vogt / Echo Journal

6/7: The Rev. John Rister of the Backus Church of the Nazarene delivers the address at Memorial Day Services sponsored by the Backus American Legion at Backus Evergreen Cemetery. Rister urged Americans to share the country’s history with the new generations, both the “good times and the bad”, so that “we can help them learn from our mistakes and not make them again”. And he said Americans will have to continue to make the sacrifices in the future that veterans have made in the past to “stand strong against our enemies both foreign and domestic.” The Legion conducted services at Backus and Ponto Lake Cemetery. Submitted Photo

7/7: The Praise Team from the Backus Church of the Nazarene provided a selection of patriotic songs during the Backus American Legion Memorial Day services at the Backus Evergreen and Ponto Lake Cemeteries. They are shown here at Ponto Lake where Nazarene Pastor John Rister delivered the address, urging Americans to share the country’s history with the new generations, both the “good times and the bad”, so that “we can help them learn from our mistakes and not make them again”. And he said Americans will have to continue to make the sacrifices in the future that veterans have made in the past to “stand strong against our enemies both foreign and domestic.” Submitted Photo