By Rebecca Rakoczy, Staff Writer

ATLANTA—A year ago, Jack Webber and the “Over 55 Group” at St. Andrew’s Church in Roswell pushed the idea of their first Veterans Day Mass in honor of military veterans, both living and deceased.

With more than 125 members in their group, many of them veterans, it was an appreciative gesture at the time and was welcomed by Father John Murphy, their pastor, he said. The Mass attracted about 135 people and was held in the chapel of the parish on Riverside Road.

This year’s Mass, planned for Saturday, Nov. 10 at 10 a.m. in the main church, takes on a special significance in light of the U.S. military’s involvement in Afghanistan. The Mass is directed at all veterans and those who are currently serving in the military.

Webber expects this year the church will be full, as worshippers reflect on both those veterans who have served their country and those who are joining the ranks of the military. For the World War II vet, and Purple Heart recipient, it is an especially poignant time to reflect on personal sacrifice then and now. Wounded after the Battle of the Bulge in Germany during World War II, service to his country meant fighting the enemy, but also watching many of his friends die beside him, and knowing he might be next. “War is so terrible—and it still is.” He worries about those sent to fight terrorism.

For Father Paul Bolton, military chaplain at Fort McPherson, war was terrible, but so was the complacency and public revulsion toward anyone in a military uniform that began during the Vietnam War. For many years, Veterans Day carried negative personal memories for the chaplain.

“It was on Veterans Day 1968 that I went to Vietnam as a priest chaplain, and returned one year later on Veterans Day 1969. During that time our unit (the 11th Armored Calvary Regiment) was under fire, and people died under attack, but I never was afraid. But the day I came back, on my way home to Rhode Island, I had a layover in San Francisco. I was in my Army uniform— and there were protesters of the war making themselves obnoxious. And in my own country, I was afraid for my life.”

In the ensuing years, Father Bolton served in the Providence, R.I., Diocese and also served in the National Guard and Reserves, before finally coming to Fort McPherson to serve as a chaplain on base.

“The attitude (toward the military) was ugly . . . You didn’t feel proud about being a veteran,” he said.

While time has erased some of the hurt, the terrorist acts against this country Sept. 11 dramatically changed the way the nation looks at its military and wearing the uniform has taken on a different significance, he said.

“This year there’s an entirely different attitude (toward the military) and I just pray to God that it lasts. Last year, everybody was so complacent about Veterans Day. This year it’s going to take on a whole new attitude and a whole new meaning.”

Recently Father Bolton went to Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport and wore his military uniform with his clerical collar.

“It was amazing how many people stopped to say, ‘Hello, chaplain, how are you?’ They were happy to see me, and I felt very proud to be wearing the uniform after all these years.”