NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) -
The first American soldier killed in combat during the Vietnam War was honored in Nashville early Sunday.
The Ernest Tubb Record Shop presented the family of Army Specialist Tom Davis with a statue of his likeness during the Midnite Jamboree at the Texas Troubadour Theatre.
Davis was killed near Saigon on Dec. 22, 1961.
President Lyndon B. Johnson later declared the Livingston native as the first American to fall in defense of our freedom in Vietnam.
"It's hard to describe the feeling," said Davis' brother Joe. "The other veterans here got a lot of recognition, and it's about time."
Grand Ole Opry member Jan Howard made a special appearance during Sunday's ceremony.
Howard lost a son during the Vietnam War.
"He said 'If I have to give one year of my life to defend my friends, my family and the way we live and the way we believe... I'll gladly do so,'" Howard said.
Davis' statue will be on permanent display at the Ernest Tubb Record Shop.
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