A First Class Veteran In Pain

He sits in a wheelchair at Lexington Health Care due to both legs being amputated. "Are you in pain?" I ask. He nods his head yes.

Junior Anderson has known pain before. In 1944, near Naples, Italy, he was shot in the left leg while dragging a wounded soldier to safety. Risking his life for his fallen comrade and for the cause of freedom, he was rewarded with three bronze stars, a purple heart, the Victory Medal, Good Conduct Medal and several campaign medals. Then he came home.

The decorated war veteran who was wounded in action, who was willing to lay down his life for our freedom, came home as a second-class citizen. You see, Staff Sgt. Junior Anderson, who was a part of the 370th Infantry (Combat Team) of the U.S. Army during World War II, is a Buffalo Soldier. He is one of only two Buffalo Soldiers who survive in North Carolina. Buffalo Soldiers served our nation from 1866 to 1951. It was a name given to African-American cavalrymen by Native Americans.

Anderson came home to a society where black citizens were not treated as equals, regardless of their military service or sacrifice. It was the same society I grew up in where my friends Herman and James were not allowed to walk down Main Street simply because they were black. Even so, James went to Vietnam where he served his nation with valor and courage like Anderson. He was every bit a first-class soldier. I stayed home and went to college. James could not afford to go to college, so he went to Vietnam and was killed. His body came home where he was still a second-class citizen, even in death.

Anderson came home a wounded warrior. His fight, however, was far from over. He has been fighting another battle in recent years as he has suffered two strokes, survived colon cancer and endured three different amputations due to gangrene. His wife, Peggy, shared with me that the struggle is more than physical. She has encountered one obstacle after another as she tries to get him the treatment he needs through the VA Hospital. She dreams of bringing her husband home, but at this point their house cannot accommodate a wheelchair. That situation can be corrected.

The Banks Miller American Legion Post 255 recently honored Anderson. You may have seen the inspiring article in The Dispatch on Oct. 9. There are also some grateful citizens who are working with Lexington Housing CDC to make the necessary renovations to their house so he can return home. Please contact the agency if you would like to help a war hero come home.

Words are not adequate to express our gratitude to Anderson. Valiant in war, victimized at home, and now suffering from numerous illnesses, yes, he has known pain. On this recent Veterans Day weekend, we will try to say thank you. Thank you to Staff Sgt. Anderson; thank you to all the courageous men and women who served faithfully and risked their lives for freedom. And thank you to my friend, James, and all who never came home. "Greater love has no man than this, that one lay down his life for his friends." John 15:13.

If ever there was a first-class citizen, it is Junior Anderson who sits in his wheelchair at Lexington Health Care. I shook his hand and said, "Thank you Mr. Anderson. Thank you for your service to our country. Thank you for all you have done to make me free." He meekly lowered his head and nodded it affirmatively. I saw the tears in his eyes. I'm not sure if he saw the tears in mine.