BANGOR, Maine — Larry McLain of Gilead marked his birthday on Sunday, Sept. 11.
Rather than a night out or dinner, however, his birthday wish was to travel to Bangor on Monday for a solemn procession through downtown to the Bangor Public Library, where The Summit Project has opened its latest memorial display of stones representing Maine’s fallen heroes.
The Summit Project is a nonprofit organization formed to create a “living memorial” that pays tribute to the fallen service members from Maine who have died in the line of duty since Sept. 11, 2001.
Larry McLain’s son, U.S. Army Pfc. Buddy McLain, is among 79 Mainers, or people with strong ties to Maine, who are listed on the Summit Project’s roster.
A former resident of Mexico, Buddy McLain was killed, along with five other U.S. soldiers, in an insurgent attack on Nov. 29, 2010, in Afghanistan while serving during Operation Enduring Freedom. He was 24 years old and a cavalry scout with the 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Kentucky.
Though his birthday falls on Sept. 11, Larry McLain said that the terrorist attacks on that day in 2001 also are significant with regard to his son.
“He told me, ‘Someday, Dad, I’m going to join the military so that this will never happen to our country again,’” Larry McLain said.
He said the Summit Project means a great deal to his and other Gold Star family members.
“To have these people honor our sons and daughters is so overwhelming. It’s really difficult to put into words,” Larry McLain said Monday. “I’ve met some wonderful people, caring people. It’s an amazing family, really it is, and to be part of it, it’s a lot of healing.”
The stones will be on display on the first floor of Bangor Public Library through early November.