The State - News from Sept. 2, 1988

A memorial service marking the anniversary of S. Brian Willson’s failed bid to halt a Navy munitions train, was marred by blaring horns, obscene chants and signs mocking Willson, who lost his legs when the train struck him. “We came to protest these crazy people,” said Jack Withrow, 65, of Sacramento, a World War II veteran among 15 people who appeared at the Concord Naval Weapons Station to oppose the service. Willson, a 47-year-old Vietnam veteran, seemed more saddened than angry at the demonstrators. “It’s not going to stop people blocking the trains,” he said. The service took place on the tracks where Willson and others protested against U.S. involvement in Central America.