A local veteran was honored Friday at Fort Howard for saving a bell.
Louis De Cleene served 20 years in the Navy aboard the second USS Des Moines. The original bell on the first USS Des Moines was heavily damaged when Hurricane Charley devastated the southeast in 2004. Thanks to some luck, De Cleene was able to recover and restore the bell that now sits at Fort Howard.
"I didn't know what to say. I'm just so happy and shocked, more or less, that they did this for me. It's kind of honoring me, and the bell, and the plaque they've put on for me which is really nice," he said.
De Cleene says he hopes the bell will help keep those veterans who served in World War II and Korea in our thoughts.
