Ottawa County to hold 1st Purple Heart ceremony

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In conjunction with National Purple Heart Day, the Ottawa County Museum will hold its first ceremony Aug. 7 to honor local recipients of the Purple Heart medal, including recipients who are deceased.
The ceremony will be held at 10:30 a.m. at the Ottawa County Resource Center, 8043 W. State Rt.163, Oak Harbor.
The ceremony is open to the public.
The medal is awarded to members of the armed forces wounded in combat with an enemy force and posthumously to next of kin of those killed in combat. As of last week, about 24 Purple Heart recipients or their families have registered for the Ottawa County Purple Heart database being developed by David Barth, a member of the museum board of directors.
The Ottawa County Museum was designated a Purple Heart Trail Museum on Jan. 25 and is one of 15 museums in the country with the designation.
Museums so designated are required to:
-Develop a database of recipients of the medal.
-Recognize Aug. 7 as National Purple Heart Day by holding a ceremony to honor recipients.
-Create a display in the museum.

Database book prepared
The database book will be provided to each library in the county and updated semi-annually, Barth said, adding Ottawa County was designated a Purple Heart Trail County May 20 by a proclamation of the county commissioners.
Barth said Purple Heart recipients living in the county or the family members of recipients who’ve passed away should consider registering themselves or relatives in the Ottawa County Purple Heart Registry. He will provide registration forms and can be contacted at drb360@gmail.com or 419-357-2057.
Recipients may register at any time, but to be included in the 2023 recognition ceremony the deadline to register is Aug. 2.
The Ottawa County Museum is located at 126 W. Third St., Port Clinton.
The trail originates at a monument in Mt. Vernon, Virginia near the burial site of George Washington.
The Purple Heart is the oldest American military decoration and was created as The Badge of Military Merit, made of purple cloth in the shape of a heart with the word “Merit” sewn on it, on Aug.7, 1782 by then General Washington.
It was re-established as the Purple Heart in February, 1932 by General Douglas MacArthur.