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From the Mayor’s Desk

As I approach 2025, which will be my sixtieth year, I realize I have lost count of the Veterans Day observances I have celebrated during my life. I grew up in a home where November 11 was a major day on the calendar. My dad, Robert W. “Doby” Gibson, who would have turned 100 years old this year, never let us forget it. Called into service as a teenager during WWII, he taught my brothers and me that freedom is not free. It has come at a price. He was one who knew: he along with five older brothers served our country during one of America’s closest calls. By God’s grace they all came home. 

Last Father’s Day, my wife Marla treated me to something I will never forget: a visit to the WWII Veterans Museum in New Orleans. It was my first visit since being there in 2009 with my dad and three older brothers for the opening of a new theatre along with other attractions. NBC News Anchor Tom Brokaw moderated the program, along with actor Tom Hanks. Four thousand people attended the dedication ceremony, including over 350 WWII Veterans. It was quite a day. Most of those members of what Brokaw called “the Greatest Generation” are now gone. My dad passed in 2014, just one week after his 90th birthday. In fact, in Natchez, only one WWII veteran still lives, Captain John “Jack” Kerwin. We will honor him Monday during our Veterans Day activities. 

In June as I stood in the exhibit area pertaining to the Battle of the Bulge, I was moved emotionally. My dad, “Doby”, was there in December of 1944. Some have forgotten how close the world came to losing freedom at the hands of Adolph Hitler. During that horrible war, I truly believe had it not been for “The Greatest Generation” we, the “Grateful Generation”, would have grown up in an entirely different world – if we had even had the grace of being born at all. Some estimates go as high as 80 million lives lost during that war, over 400,000 of them American servicemen. 

Thankfully, in 1945, my dad came home to a free America. He used to tell the story of kneeling down and kissing the ground when his ship landed in New York City. I can only imagine him looking to Ellis Island, remember his English grandparents who arrived at the same destination just a few decades earlier when they first arrived in America seeking a better life. R.W., Tech Sgt., “Doby” Gibson, had been all the way from Normandy to Berlin with the 279th US Combat Engineers, clearing the way for General Patton’s army to win the war on the European front. I thank God that he made it home safely.  

On Monday, November 11, we will honor our veterans. Many events throughout Natchez and The Miss-Lou are planned. A highlight will be gathering at Memorial Park Monday at 10:30 a.m. to dedicate a new bench being placed there in memory of Stephen Neilson, a US Naval Veteran who passed away earlier this year and was a leading force in Natchez’ American Legion Post 4. At 11 we will make our way down Main Street to the historic Natchez Grandstand on the Bluff for a special ceremony where we will honor three beloved Natchezians: Galen Mark LaFrancis, our dear friend, now deceased, who served our country and also our community in so many ways; Ben Tucker, US Army Veteran who continues to serve as Deputy Commander of our local VFW; and last but never least, WWII hero John “Cpn. Jack” Kerwin. I hope all will participate in these meaningful events, remembering our veterans and giving thanks to all, even now, who serve to keep us free. Freedom has definitely come at a price. Let us never forget. Because Natchez – America – Deserves More. 

Dan M. Gibson is mayor of Natchez.