Sanders Orders Flags to Half-Staff to Mourn Sergeant Charles Edwin Beaty

TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS COME - GREETINGS:

WHEREAS: Sergeant (SGT) Charles Edwin Beaty was born in Craighead County, Arkansas, on April 14, 1924, and entered service with the U.S. Army on November 19, 1942;

WHEREAS: Sgt Beaty valiantly served in the Korean War and was assigned I Company, 3rd Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division and was stationed in the infamous Chosin Reservoir;

WHEREAS: Chinese Communist Forces launched an attack on the evening of November 27, 1950, on US and UN troops stationed in the area and Sgt Beaty's regiment heroically held ground on the east side of the reservoir but was forced to withdrawal to a new defensive position;

WHEREAS: After another attack on his position, Sgt. Beaty was reported missing in action on December 3, near the village of Hagaru-ri through unknown circumstances;

WHEREAS: Following the historic July 27, 2018, Summit between then-U.S. President Donald J. Trump and North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un, the DPRK turned over 55 remains of U.S. Service members, where Sgt. Beaty's remains were identified;

WHEREAS: Sgt. Beaty courageously fought in North Korea and honorably served the United States and earned multiple accolades to include a Purple Heart, United Nations Services Medal and the Korean Presidential Unit Citation; and

WHEREAS: 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.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS, acting under the authority vested in me as Governor of the State of Arkansas, do hereby order that the United States flag and the state flag of Arkansas be flown at half-staff throughout the State from sunrise to sunset on Tuesday, November 19, 2024, on the day of Sgt. Charles Edwin Beaty's interment, in memory of his life.

IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of Arkansas to be affixed this 14th day of November, in the year of our Lord 2024.