By Aimee Dolloff
INDIAN ISLAND, Maine — The attention Monday from media and other Penobscot Nation members was almost more than World War II veteran Charles Shay could handle.
"I’ll be glad when all this is over," he said modestly while waiting in his living room on Indian Island for the arrival of Francois Gauthier, consul general of France in Boston.
Gauthier traveled to Maine on Monday to accompany Shay to Washington, D.C., where today he is to receive the Legion of Honor medal, France’s highest military and civil recognition.
"He’s a courageous soldier," Gauthier said of Shay. "Because he participated in liberating my country, we think we owe him a special recognition."
Founded by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802, the National Order of the Legion of Honor is the highest civil and military honor in France. It is presented not only for military service, but also for eminent service in other fields such as science or culture, Gauthier explained. Recipients of the honor are named by decree signed by the president of the Republic of France. Shay will be given the title of knight of the Legion of Honor.
"It’s important to me because I’m trying to promote the history of my family, and I’m trying to bring attention to the Native American veterans that served," Shay said.
Read more here: http://bangornews.com/news/t/news.aspx?articleid=156221&zoneid=500
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