Mike Sampson of Columbus will be honored at the Vietnam Memorial in St. Paul on Memorial Day
The U.S. flag that covered the casket of Army Spec. 4th Class Michael Sampson of Columbus has remained folded inside a plastic case since the day of his funeral in October of 1970. Until recently.
On Memorial Day, Monday, May 28, the flag that covered Sampson’s casket following his death on Oct. 3, 1970 from wounds sustained in Vietnam on Aug. 30, 1970 will fly once again. In a rare honor, the Sampson flag has been selected to fly over the Minnesota Vietnam Veterans Memorial at the State Capitol in St. Paul.
A 3 p.m. program is planned on this the 20th anniversary of the memorial which honors the 1077 service members from Minnesota who gave their lives in Southeast Asia so many years ago.
The program will be led by Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 470 from Anoka County. Ken Dufresne of Columbus, an Air Force veteran who served in the Vietnam era from 1961-1966, will care for the Sampson flag and lead the flag-raising ceremony on Monday. See more in Clint Riese’s Forest Lake Times story.
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