CONCORD — On Saturday, the remains of Sergeant First Class Donald (Donnie) Shue, U.S. Army Special Forces, who went missing in Laos in November 1969, will return home with a special procession.
The procession will stretch from Charlotte to Whitley’s Funeral Home in Kannapolis, with a stop in downtown Concord for a presentation from the city, other government entities and veterans groups.
Shue grew up in Concord, and moved to Kannapolis before entering the Army in 1967. His remains were recently located in Laos, are now in Pearl Harbor, and will arrive in Charlotte on Friday.
The procession will be escorted by the Concord Police Department, Kannapolis Police Department and Cabarrus County Sheriff’s Office, with support from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department and the North Carolina Highway Patrol.
It is estimated that more than 1,000 members of Rolling Thunder, Patriot Guard Riders and other groups will participate in the procession on motorcycles. In addition, two U.S. Army North Carolina National Guard AH-64D Apache helicopters will join the procession convoy from the air.
The convoy will travel through Charlotte on I-85 north to I-485, and then take exit 33 onto N.C. Highway 49 North. From that point, the procession will travel through Harrisburg on Highway 49 North, then take Warren C. Coleman Boulevard to Union Street and into downtown Concord (please visit the City Hall Blog City Hall Blog for more details).
This will be an opportunity to honor the sacrifice of Shue and his family, after missing for decades. Citizens are encouraged to line the procession route holding American flags. Additionally, residences and business located along the route are encouraged to display American flags and other patriotic items.
The ceremony in downtown Concord will begin when the procession convoy arrives, estimated at 11 a.m. on Saturday. The ceremony will include several musical performances and special presentations from government and veterans’ groups.
Parking spaces on Union Street South between Cabarrus and Corban avenues will not be available in order to accommodate the procession and ceremony. Visitors attending the event should park in the Cabarrus Avenue Parking Deck, other on-street parking areas or surface parking lots accessible from Church and Spring Streets. Please visit http://www.concorddowntown.com/directions-parking.html for more parking information.
The city of Kannapolis is planning a ceremony at Veterans Park to begin once the convoy arrives there.