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77 years later, local veterans remember Pearl Harbor

On this solemn 77th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor that drew the United States into World War II, local veterans are honoring the lives lost that day with a remembrance ceremony.

Friday, the Fleet Reserve Association Chapter 290 held a memorial in Atlantic Beach with especially heavy hearts.

“It’s just an honor to be a part of it, and try and remember them, and to continue their legacy and know that they are not forgotten,” said chapter President Chad Burg.

This year, Burg and his organization are remembering the last member of the Mayport Pearl Harbor Survivors Club, Robert Beaudreau, who died in September.

STORY: 7 things to know about Pearl Harbor on the 77th anniversary

Those in attendance- both veterans and civilians- laid flowers on a memorial to Beaudreau and the rest of his fellow sailors who are gone, but never forgotten.

Mike Hutto says he joined the Navy after watching his father serve. His dad was at sea during the Pearl Harbor attack and his ship responded to help.

“They pulled in two days after Pearl Harbor to the devastation, confusion, they set up morgues,” Hutto said.

“It’s a day that should be remembered forever,” said Robbin Walker, the president of American Legion Auxiliary District 6.  “It changed our country. It changed the way that we service our veterans, it changed the world.  It was a terrible event, and we should never forget this day.”

Seventy-seven years to the day later, these local veterans want to make sure that never happens.