Veterans to commemorate Hiroshima at Truman museum

A Kansas City Air Force veterans association will participate in an annual ceremony Saturday at the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum commemorating the dropping of the first atomic bomb during World War II.

The event will include laying a wreath on Truman’s grave site and a color guard ceremony at the museum in Independence. It will start at 11 a.m. and last about 15 minutes.

The Kansas City chapter of the Missouri Air Force Association, named the Harry S. Truman chapter, will perform the ceremony.

Susan Medler, communications director for the Truman Institute, said the event is not organized by the institute but by the chapter, which does it as a way to pay tribute to Truman. The group is named in Truman’s honor because the founders credit their lives to the decisions Truman made during the war.

The Kansas City chapter has performed the ceremony for the past five years, said Paul Bekebrede, Kansas City chapter president. He said about a dozen veterans will participate in Saturday’s event.

“This was such a momentous decision that Truman had to make to end the war, and hopefully do it in a manner that would minimize the total number of casualties,” Bekebrede said.

This story was originally published August 5, 2016 at 4:26 PM with the headline "Veterans to commemorate Hiroshima at Truman museum."