Nahant vet maintains enduring tribute to those lost in Korean War

NAHANT – While walking past the Korean War monument in Ernest Messina’s front yard, a man stopped his son and pointed up at the American flag.”See those colors?” the father said. “Remember them and respect them, because the man who lives here probably gave his life for them.”What the man didn’t know was that Messina, unseen, had heard him. Messina came out of his house to hug the stranger and told him, “Please don’t thank me. Thank the men who didn’t come back.”It’s the attitude Messina usually takes. As the Commander of the Lynn Chapter of the Disabled American Veterans, the Nahant resident has made it his duty to remind Americans about the sacrifices that were made in Korea between 1950 and 1953, especially since this year is the 60th anniversary of the war’s start. “It’s not about me. It’s about my men,” says Messina.Messina’s monument was made and given to him in 2000 for the 50th anniversary by Daniel King, son of a Marine Corps veteran. It consists of a dark plaque with raised letters, remembering veterans of the “Forgotten War.””It’s the only campaign everyone refuses to remember,” said Messina. “With so many people gone, they still call it a ‘conflict’ – it’s a war. When you’re facing the killing end of a rifle, it’s no longer a ‘police action.’Messina says the monument is dedicated to the four men he lost when he was the staff sergeant of a platoon. He admits that there was a lot of guilt over the casualties, because “the man who stands next to you in line – that man is your brother. You’ll never know when you need him.”Messina was disabled in the war from frostbite, leaving him with osteoporosis and the dependence upon a cane to walk. He said none of the troops were prepared for the 37 degree below zero temperature they endured in 1951. “There are no words in the dictionary that can describe that cold.”Messina believes that without the lessons from the men, specifically the Marines, who braved winters in Europe during WWII, he would not have survived.”Each generation follows the one before it,” said Messina. “If you speak to any Korean vet, they’ll tell you if the government had learned its lesson in Korea, there wouldn’t have been a Vietnam. They didn’t learn their lesson in Vietnam and now we’re in Iraq and Afghanistan.”Messina is enraged when he hears towns with public schools are not mandating the Pledge of Allegiance to be said every morning, especially while the country is fighting two wars.”People don’t appreciate what patriotism is. We should be thankful that there are many men and women that give their lives for your freedom and your family.”