Knoxville to host Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day events with Medal of Honor recipient
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Knoxville will honor the 82nd anniversary of the Dec. 7, 1941, Pearl Harbor attack that killed over 2,400 service members and civilians and pushed the United States to enter World War II.
Knoxville’s annual Pearl Harbor Day of Remembrance will begin at 11:30 a.m. Dec. 7 at the Expo Center on Clinton Highway. Larry Sharp, a Vietnam veteran, will serve as the master of ceremonies, and Medal of Honor recipient Sgt. Sammy L. Davis is the keynote speaker.
Along with Davis, Buck Karnes, Knoxville’s only Medal of Honor recipient, and George Gillespie, who designed the original Medal of Honor, will be posthumously honored during this year’s event.
The event also will feature Karns High School’s Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps, Karns High School’s Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps and even an American eagle named Challenger.
Knoxville’s American Legion Post 2 Pearl Harbor Remembrance Ceremony will begin at 12:45 p.m. Dec. 7 at East Tennessee State Veterans Cemetery on Lyons View Pike. Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs is the keynote speaker.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Japanese planes attacked the United States Naval Base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, killing 2,403 people and wounding 1,178 others. The USS Arizona was completely destroyed and the USS Oklahoma capsized.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt called Dec. 7 “a date which will live in infamy” and declared war on Japan, ushering the United States into World War II.
Devarrick Turner is a trending news reporter. Email devarrick.turner@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter @dturner1208.
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day events in Knoxville
