Augusta WWII veteran honored with carved cane

AUGUSTA — First Lady Ann LePage recently presented a hand-carved eagle cane to former Army World War II Technical Sgt. Edmond G. Pare of Augusta.

The presentation was made on Pare’s 91st birthday. During the ceremony, Pare also received a certificate of recognition for his service from Brigadier General James Campbell, Maine’s Adjutant General and Commissioner of the Maine Department of Defense, Veterans, and Emergency Management.

The presentation was also attended by wood carver Andy Rice of Bowdoin, a member of the Maine Woodcarvers Association.

Pare’s son, Peter Pare, a Vietnam veteran and current director of the State of Maine Bureau of Employment Services, contacted LePage’s office to request a cane for his father.

The cane is personalized with Pare’s military history. Pare served with the Maine 103rd Infantry Regiment Company, a Maine Army National Guard Unit, that when mobilized in 1941 had 85 officers and 1,522 men. By the time they arrived in the Pacific it had grown to 2,600. Within nine months they lost 200 men, half of whom were from Maine.

Pare served with the Maine 103rd Infantry Regiment Company, a Maine Army National Guard Unit. He served in the Pacific on Guadalcanal, Solomons, New Guinea, Luzon, Philippines, and New Georgia during World War II. He was awarded the American Defense Service Medal, Asiatic Pacific Theater Medal and Combat Infantry Badge.

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