The City of Carmel will conduct a virtual Memorial Day ceremony at 9 a.m. on Friday, May 22. The event will broadcast on the City of Carmel Facebook page. Retired Col. Mike Getchell will serve as the event’s guest speaker.
Getchell’s 30-year career in the Army’s operational forces began and ended with the 2nd Infantry Division. His first assignment was with 3rd Brigade, 2nd ID in the Republic of Korea where he served on Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) for three years during the waning stages of the Cold War.
Twenty years later, Getchell returned to 2nd ID to command a Brigade Combat Team at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, and during combat operations in southern Afghanistan.
In between these assignments, Getchell accumulated extensive peace time and combat experience with the famed “Screaming Eagles of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault). After the Cold War, he joined the “Screaming Eagles” for four years, training soldiers all over the United States.