La Jolla ceremony marks Memorial Day on Mount Soledad

The Mount Soledad Memorial Association’s annual Memorial Day ceremony in La Jolla drew a crowd estimated at up to 1,400 people to honor fallen members of the military.

The May 29 commemoration at the Mount Soledad National Veterans Memorial included the unveiling of a plaque honoring Walter “Uncle Bert” Mintus, a Navy aviation radioman whose plane was shot down over the western Pacific in 1944 during World War II.

Mintus’ remains were discovered by nonprofit organization Project Recover in 2016.

Navy Vice Adm. Kenneth Whitesell, commander of Naval Air Forces, gave the keynote address at the ceremony.

— La Jolla Light staff and City News Service ◆