Princeton’s Mitch McCoy receives Quilt of Valor during 9/11 Remembrance Ceremony

Princeton stopped on Monday to remember the attacks that took place on Sept. 11, 2001, that tragically took the lives of almost 3,000 citizens and first responders on the event’s 22nd anniversary.

A Remembrance Ceremony was held by the Princeton Area Chamber of Commerce in Soldiers and Sailors Park with contributions from organizations such as the Princeton Veterans Group, Princeton Fire Department Honor Guard and more.

The ceremony also took the time to honor a Princeton veteran and share a father’s story of a loved one lost.

Princeton’s Mitch McCoy, who was enlisted for eight years with the Army National Guard, including a tour of duty in Afghanistan, was presented with a Quilt of Valor in appreciation of his service and sacrifices for his country and community.

McCoy shared how during his time in service led him to to where he is in his life.

“It was basically Hell on Earth and every day we fought to survive,” McCoy said. “But during a place of Hell, God so graciously opened my heart to know him, and through that, allowed me to see the promise of Heaven through his son, Jesus Christ.

“So in the midst of terrible things, salvation was known and I was allowed to come healthy, happy and blessed to a nation that still loved us. I was able to raise children in a peaceful community and go to work every day.”

McCoy, who was deployed only a month after getting married, showed his appreciation to his wife, Katrina, for her many sacrifices.

“As my fellow veterans know, it’s not just the person who is in the Army or goes overseas is in the war,” McCoy said. “I left my wife and she was such a rock to continue on and survive every day.”

He also praised the community members who continually “thank the veterans and willfully pray at home for everybody who is away.” He said he is proud to see the red, white and blue throughout the city of Princeton.

Terry Johnson of the Quilt of Valor Foundation said the organization considers it a privilege to honor McCoy as they have done thousands of other veterans across the country.

“Though we may never know the extent of your sacrifice to protect the United States of America, we award you this Quilt of Valor as an expression of gratitude from a grateful nation,” Johnson said. “Thank you for your service and welcome home.”

During the ceremony, Dan Hollinsaid of Princeton remembered his son, Lincoln, who was killed in duty on April 7, 2003, during the U.S. Army’s Operation Iraqi Freedom. He was struck while leading the 11th engineer battalion, known as the Jungle Cats.

“They told us our son died instantly. He was 27,” Hollinsaid said, somberly.

After his son’s death, Hollinsaid said other soldiers wrote that Lincoln led “by example and hard work ethics and fairness.”

The Hollinsaids found a poem that he found in his son’s notebook in his belongings, which he knows as the soldier’s poem. Hollinsaid said he believes this poem “says it best about Lincoln’s short life and military time.”

“I was that which others didn’t want to be,” Hollinsaid read. “I went where others feared to go and did what others feared to do. I asked nothing from those who gave nothing and reluctantly accepted the thought of eternal loneliness should I fail. I have seen the face of terror and felt the stinging cold of fear and enjoyed the sweet taste of a moment’s love. I have cried, pained and hoped. But most of all I have lived the times others would say were best forgotten. At least some day, I will be able to say, that I was proud of what I was.

“I will say it for him, he was a soldier.”

Air Force veteran Brad Oeder and retired Command Staff Sergeant Tom Root of Princeton also spoke. Lilly Mabry, 13, of Princeton sang the national anthem.

The Princeton Veteran’s Group was accompanied by the Princeton Fire Department Honor Guard to present the colors. They performed a 21-gun salute to conclude the ceremony.