AUGUSTA -- Jean Paul Guerin remembers being hit with the shrapnel like it was yesterday.

"It hurt some, that's for sure," Guerin remembered with a small chuckle.

It was Sept. 12, 1944. Guerin was a 21-year-old soldier in the Army.

At the time, Europe was a patchwork of battlegrounds with the spilled blood and footprints of Nazi and Italian armies, Allied military forces and terrified civilians.

Guerin was in combat against Nazi forces when the shrapnel pierced and entered his leg.

Less than a year later, on Jan. 6, 1945, he was shot in the hand, again while battling German military units.

Thursday, Guerin and 17 others, living and dead, were honored by Gov. John Baldacci in the Statehouse Hall of Flags for their heroic efforts in war.

The State of Maine Gold Star honors those killed in combat or while deployed. The Silver Star Honorable Service Medals honor prisoners of war or those injured in combat.

Others, such as Guerin, received the Purple Heart, a medal award by the U.S. military to those injured in combat.

"It feels really good," Guerin said of being recognized.

When asked why he decided to enter the military, Guerin said, "You know those posters of Uncle Sam pointing and they said, 'Uncle Sam Needs You'? Well, he needed us."

Guerin trekked through Italy, France and Germany during his deployment, often trying to force the Axis powers to retreat.

When asked if he was ever afraid of being killed, Guerin gently smiled and said, "No, no."

He returned home after the Allies claimed victory to raise a family and work in a paper mill.

Such stories from military veterans, Baldacci said, need to be heard and remembered.

"Our veterans are like the glue of our communities," Baldacci said. "Younger generations need to know your stories and what went on in the time before them."

But some will never be able to tell their stories themselves.

Two mothers, Thelma Brooks and Mercedes Bechard, were present to accept Gold Star medals for their sons, both of whom died in Vietnam.

"My son was a good man," Brooks, of Waterville said. "I'm still proud of him."

Brooks' son, Army Sgt. Richard Goggin, of Augusta, drowned in a river trying to save other people in April 26, 1971. He had just turned 24.

Brooks was at work when the two uniformed men came to her office to tell her of his death.

"I knew what had happened the minute they asked me if I had a son in the service," Brooks said.

Bechard's son, Army Staff Sgt. Raymond Bechard, was killed in action on March 9, 1969.

More than 40 people in Maine have been awarded the Gold Star Honorable Service Medal and Maine Veterans' Services continue to look for families members of the fallen.

Nancy Lake, a Farmington woman who accepted a Silver Star Honorable Service Medal on behalf of her late husband, Army Sgt. Ralph Lake, fought back tears of pride and sadness as Baldacci presented the medal to her.

Ralph Lake died 16 months ago. He was a prisoner of war in Germany during World War II.

"He was proud of his military service, though he would be hesitant to talk about being a prisoner of war," Nancy Lake said. "I know he would have been proud to receive this himself."

Meghan V. Malloy -- 623-3811

Ext. 431

mmalloy@centralmaine.com