The late Paul Freeman Lee was laid to rest yesterday at the Veteran\u2019s Cemetery in Marpi with full military honors.<\/p>\n
His funeral was the result of a collaboration between the Veteran\u2019s Affairs Office under the CNMI Office of the Governor and the U.S Naval Forces in Guam.<\/p>\n
Lee was a retired officer in the U.S. Naval Forces. <\/p>\n
Six men and women ventured to the CNMI in order to properly honor Lee with a three-rifle volley salute, personally carrying Lee\u2019s casket into its final resting place, and personally handing the U.S. flag to Lee\u2019s widow. <\/p>\n
After accepting the flag from the servicemen, Lee\u2019s wife, Barbara, said, that although she is going to deeply miss her husband, it was an honor and a pleasant surprise to have servicemen from the military arm that her husband had served, honor him in the way that they did. <\/p>\n
Michelle Lee, the daughter of Lee, will always remember him as the strong man she had always known. She said that, although her father was sick for a long time, he carried himself like he was not and never allowed anyone to feel sorry for him. <\/p>\n
Lee was a veteran of the Vietnam War and received multiple military accolades in his 30 years of service. <\/p>\n
He was a recipient of a Purple Heart, a Vietnam Service Medal with a silver and two bronze stars, Humanitarian Service Medal, 7th Good Conduct Award, and more. <\/p>\n
Lee is survived by his wife, their three children Steve, Paul Jr., and Michelle, and their grandchildren. <\/p>\n
It was VA executive director Stanley Iakopo\u2019s first military funeral since he took office.<\/p>\n
Iakopo hopes to honor all the veterans in the Commonwealth in a similar way with at least one representative from the Department of Defense in the veteran\u2019s respective division when they were still in the armed forces. <\/p>\n
Iakopo said the service was a collaborative effort with partner agencies like the Department of Public Works and the Saipan Mayor\u2019s Office, who prepared the burial ground for Lee at the Veteran\u2019s Cemetery in Marpi.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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