Jonesboro, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – Nov. 15, 2024 – Flags will be flown at half-staff throughout Arkansas on Tuesday to honor a U.S. Army Sergeant, who will finally be laid to rest in his hometown of Lake City after almost 75 years.
While stationed in North Korea in 1950, U.S. Army Sgt. Charles Edwin Beaty was reported missing after an attack from Chinese Communist Forces on Nov. 27, 1950.
Beaty’s regiment held ground on the east side of a reservoir but was forced to withdraw to a new defensive position. After another attack on his position, Beaty was reported missing in action on Dec. 3, near the village of Hagaru-ri through unknown circumstances, according to a press release from Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ Office.
Beaty’s military service began on Nov. 19, 1942, serving during World War II, according to his Emerson Funeral Home obituary. He reenlisted on April 14, 1950, was stationed in North Korea, and assigned to I Company, 3rd Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division.
Following the 2018 summit between then-U.S. President Donald J. Trump and North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un, the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) turned over 55 remains of U.S. Service members, where Beaty’s remains were identified. He had been killed in action fighting in the Chosin Reservoir Battle near the town of Hagaru-Ri in North Korea, on Dec. 3, 1950, at the age of 26.
“Sgt. Beaty will finally be laid to rest in his home of Arkansas surrounded by family, loved ones, and a community that cherishes his memory and honors his service,” the press release stated.
Beaty’s recovered body was transported from the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii, and formally received with honors at the Clinton National Airport in Little Rock on Friday, where it was then escorted on to the Emerson Funeral Home in Jonesboro.
Sanders also ordered that the United States flag and the state flag of Arkansas be flown at half-staff throughout the state from sunrise to sunset in memory of his life on Tuesday, which is the day of his interment.
Beaty’s medals and decorations include the Purple Heart, Army Good Conduct Medal, WW II Victory Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Korean Service Medal with one bronze service star, Combat Infantryman Badge, Presidential Unit Citation (Navy), Honorable Service Lapel Button WW II, United Nations Service Medal, Republic of Korea-Korean War Service Medal and the Korea Presidential Unit Citation.
Graveside funeral services with full military honors will be held at 1 p.m. on Nov. 19, at Lake City Cemetery with Emerson Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.
Visitation will follow the ceremony at the graveside.
For lasting memorials, the family asks that consideration be given to Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation, 1818 Library St., Suite 500, Reston, VA 20190.
