The brother and sister of Anthony Grundy joined with his cousins and other friends honoring the life of the Henryetta marine killed in Vietnam.
At a ceremony Friday morning, a three-mile stretch of Interstate 40 reaching from the exit west of town to the junction with the Indian Nation Turnpike was officially named the Lance Corporal Anthony Grundy Memorial Highway.
“There’s a number of programs you get to take part of none as special as this one today,” said state senator Roger Thompson. He added Grundy’s name to the bill designating state highways in honor of servicemen.
Thompson pointed out that Grundy, who was 20 at the time of his death, was one of over 14,000 who died in that war at that age in their lives. “When we come back to Henryetta we find out that there is just one from Henryetta that is in that statistic and that is Lance Corporal Grundy.
“It’s not just a sign on the highway. This is our hero, this our young man who went off to fight for our freedom.”
He said he sees people at the Capitol every day making demands, marching but when he looks out the window and, “see Old Glory flying every day because of men like Anthony Grundy who said I will go and serve my country.”
He remembered his 18-year-old uncle who went to Vietnam. He came back but he was not the same man who went. They all changed.”
The mounted replica of the sign on I-40 was given to the family by Thompson.
That sign was erected this past week and the canvas covering removed to allow the family members to see it when they came from Clearview for the dedication. Grundy is buried in the Clearview cemetery.
Henryetta VFW Post 539 commander Bill Goodner told the family that it is, “the tragedy of war that our young military members make up a large percentage of the casualties.
Grundy died July 7, 1968 in Quang Nam Province from shrapnel from a grenade blast.
