The sons of Ben and Hattie Davis give special meaning to the term ‘band of brothers.’
Eleven in all, their combined 158 years of service to the U.S. military make them brothers in arms as well as brothers raised on a family farm in rural Alabama.
Seven of the 11 gathered in mid-July at a hotel in Mississippi for a reunion thick with brotherly love and military pride. They laughed together, told stories from their days growing up and serving the country and reminisced about what it was like to be black in the U.S. military in the 20th century.
But in the end, they talked less about racism than the lack of respect all veterans feel from their fellow Americans.
Lebronze Davis, who fought in Vietnam said – “Being in the military, it was a fine thing, We all think we’ve done an outstanding job.”
In 2017, the Davis men were honored by the National Infantry Museum Foundation. The names of the 11 brothers and their uncle are engraved on four paving stones installed at the museum.
Foundation President Pete Jones said in a statement to The Associated Press, “What these brothers did out of love for both family and country is nothing short of remarkable. Their sense of duty is unrivaled, and is the kind of spirit that makes our nation’s armed forces the greatest in the world.”
The 11 veterans were raised on a 60-acre cotton farm in Wetumpka, Alabama, by parents who moral and ethical values were called “pristine.”