A SALUTE
TO VETERANS A
PUBLICATION • NOV. 7, 2020 • 36 PAGES
Inside Plus ... Readers salute our soldiers
More than 20 pages of photos you submitted of Sauk Valley veterans
Sauk Valley Media thanks its readers, advertisers, and – most importantly – all the veterans who made this section possible
Want to salute a veteran? You can There’s more than one way we can give back to those who’ve given us so much Metro News Service
recovery that much quicker.
SERVE AS A DRIVER FOR VETERANS. Unfortunately, many service members return from overseas missions with disabilities, some of which prevent them from driving. Adults who want to help service members can serve as drivers for veterans who can’t drive themselves. Such a gesture ensures they won’t miss any appointments with doctors or physical therapists, helping them get on the road to
REMEMBER OUR VETERANS
DONATE YOUR AIRLINE MILES. Some disabled veterans receive medical treatments far away from home at facilities that specialize in treating certain types of injuries, which can make it difficult for their families to be there for them during their recoveries. By donating airline miles to military families, ordinary adults can ensure injured service members can still see their families during difficult times in their lives. Access to such support systems can be a big help as veterans work to recover from their injuries. SPONSOR A SERVICE DOG. A significant percentage of veterans return home with post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. PTSD has been linked to a host of conditions, including depression and anxiety. However, programs such as Companions for Heroes, an organization that places service dogs with veterans, has helped many veterans successfully cope with PTSD. By sponsoring a service dog through an organization such as Companions for Heroes, adults who want to help service members can provide an invaluable service to men and women fighting to regain their quality of life. There are many ways for the rest of us to show our support for the brave men and women who selflessly serve in the military.
Thank You For Your Service and Sacrifice
Preston-Schilling
“Great Deals, Great Service, Since 1926”
Funeral Home, Ltd.
Rt. 52 N. Sublette, IL • Ph. 815/849-5232 or 1-800-227-5203
www.vaessenbrothers.com
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Jesse P. Partington, Owner/Funeral Director Beth Baker, Funeral Director
213 Crawford Ave., Dixon, IL (815) 288-4469 prestonschilling.com
To you who have answered the call
Thank you to all of our Vets who have served and are serving!
We offer our sincere thanks for your bravery and sacrifice. Because of you, America is still the land of the free.
Dixon’s Tire Center 1110 E. River Road (Hwy 2 North) • Dixon 815-284-3324 M-F 8am-5pm, Sat 8am-Noon
“Chesty Puller”
requests all Marines to be present at
Family Owned & Operated Since 1967
502 IL Rt. 2, Dixon, IL 815-284-2044
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Military service in the United States was once more common than it is today. According to the Council on Foreign Relations, the draft for military service was ended in 1973, a point in time when 2.2 million men and women made up the country’s active military personnel. By 2018, the number had dipped below 1.3 million. Military service in Canada is also somewhat uncommon, as the Department of National Defence reports that active military personnel totaled just 68,000 as of 2018. The vast majority of people in countries where military service is not compulsory will never serve in the military. But that does not mean non-military personnel do not appreciate the sacrifices service members and their families make. In fact, a recent report conducted for Canada’s Department of National Defence found that while many Canadians seem only vaguely aware of what their military does, appreciation for service members was high. Service members and their families make many sacrifices to protect the lives and freedoms of their fellow citizens. The following are three unique ways to give back to these selfless men and women, who often benefit greatly from even the simplest of gestures.
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OUR FREEDOM
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For Curbside Pickup call | 815-625-9720 or 815-625-7969 www.kellysinc.com
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FRANK’S
104 E. Mason • Polo
Tues. Nov. 10th at 18:00 hr (6:00 PM) for the 245th USMC Birthday Party 815.677.3636
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SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
SALUTE TO VETERANS
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Small Engine Repair 405 Ash Avenue, Sterling 815-622-9999 • www.toro.com
Alex T. Paschal/ apaschal@saukvalley.com
From farm boy to vice president A Dixon man learned a lot about life and discipline while serving as an important link in a supply chain during a war that was a world away from the farm fields where his family had put down roots BY BRIAN WEIDMAN
bweidman@saukvalley.com Bill Reigle seemed destined for a life on the farm. He was the 10th of 11 children, and Granville and Margaret Reigle had jobs for everybody on the family farm northwest of Dixon. Chores before and after school were the norm, not the exception. That didn’t leave much time for organized sports, even for the strapping, 6-foot-3 Reigle. His athletic skills shined only in pickup basketball games against fellow Future Farmers of America members.
REIGLE photos on p. 5, story cont’d on p. 6
KSB Hospital wishes to thank all of our veterans, both past and present, for their sacrifice and service.
3 SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Bill Reigle has a lot to look back on in his life – memories, milestones, service to his country and community – but one thing he doesn’t see when he looks back is regret: “I just don’t know how much more you could expect out of life: the kids, the grandkids and now the great-grandkids – they all love me and I love them and they’re awfully important to me. I don’t know why I’ve been blessed so well, but I have. Whatever day that ends, I have no regrets.”
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
SALUTE TO VETERANS
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Cpl. Robert Washington Ager
Cpl. Wallis A. Adell U.S. Army Served 1953-1955
Served 3 Yrs (14 mos Korea)
Passed away 9/23/2016
Passed away 5/22/2019
Donald L. Allen SSGT. U.S Army - WWII Served 1943 -1946 Passed Away 2002
Louis J. Amesquita U.S. Army Cpl. - Korea Served 4 Years
James A. Arduini U. S. Navy 1986 - 1972
James F. Arduini U. S. Navy 1966 - 1970
Walter Arthurs Jr. U.S. Army - Japan & Korea
Served 1948 - 1952 Passed away 10/13/15
U.S. Marine Corps
Donald Babel U.S. Army Served 1946 -1948
Ivan Akridge U.S. Air Force Served 1945-1946
Passed away 7/18/1965
Everett Albright Navy 1994 - 2015
Lt. David R. Allen U.S Navy Lt. - Vietnam Served 1963 - 1967
Richard J. Amesquita U.S. Air Force Served 1942 - 1945
Samuel J. Amesquita
Passed Away 6/17/1993
U.S. Marines Served 1951 - 1954 Passed Away 8/16/1988
U.S. Air Force - Korean War Served 14 Years
James M. Arduini U. S. Navy 1943 - 1944
Reise A. Arduini U.S. Navy Served 2017 - Present
Army 754th Tank Bn. Served 2 Years Passed Away 3/4/2014
Kenneth Babel
Raymond Babel
Harley Babel U.S. Army - WWI
Passed away in 1961
U.S. Air Force
Served 1950 - 1954 Passed Away 7/19/2015
Carl Anderson
Tony Arduini
U.S. Navy Served 1942 - 1945
Passed Away 12/6/2002
MARINEMEMORIES
5
ABOVE: Reigle has a scrapbook filled with memories of his time in the Marines. RIGHT: Reigle still has his Marine coat and dress wools – and they still fit.
Photos: Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
ABOVE: A certificate sent to Reigle’s mom announced that he passed the tests to be accepted into boot camp. RIGHT: Reigle started his Marine training at Parris Island, South Carolina, for 2 months of boot camp, beginning Feb. 2, 1951.
Thank you
VETERANS
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FOR YOUR SERVICE AND SACRIFICES
100 E. LeFevre Road, Sterling, IL • (815) 625-0400 • www.cghmc.com
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Like his fellow G.I.’s, Bill Reigle has mementos of his time in military: photos, uniforms, and more — and one more thing that’s stood the test of time: pride in his service. “The Korean War started a month after I finished my freshman year, and I made up my mind then,” he said. “I had a cousin who was a Marine in World War II, and he always impressed me. Everybody said, ‘Well, why do you want to be a Marine?’ I said, ‘I just think it’s the best branch to be in, the most elite.’
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
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Russell Babel U.S. Army - U.S. Air Force Served 1942 - 1945
Passed Away in 1993
Sgt. Richard Beattie Army Artillery Korea Served 1952-1954
Leon F. Boehle U.S. Army Served 1966-1968
Raymond E. Bonnell SP4 Combat Engineer U.S. Army Served 5/21/71-5/18/73
Conrad Banda U.S. Army Served 1980 - 1983
CPL Dean L. Bennett U.S. Army, Korea Passed Away Oct. 25, 1998
Warren Bohnhoff Army 1951 - 1953 Passed Away 8/24/15
SSGT Floyd L. Bowen
U.S. Army - WWII Served 4 Years
Passed away 6/15/05
MSGT Lee Bardier U.S. Air Force Served 1972-1993
Jerry Bartlett Marine Corps Served 1960-1964
Charles F. Berry
BM3 Robert E. Bertolozzi Jr.
U.S. Army 247th Combat Engineers Served 1943 - 1945 Passed Away 2/28/13
Paul
Mike
U.S. Navy Served 1968 - 1974 Passed Away 2/27/02
Bonnell Brothers Jess Melburn Frank WWII
Robert Boyenga U.S. Air Force Served 1965 - 1969
Sheldon
Bill Brierton U.S. Navy Served 1952 - 1956
Corporal Wayne A. Bauer U.S. Marines Served 1972 - 1976
Amy Dempsey Bickner SPC U.S. Army Illinois National Guard Served 1996 - 2002
Corporal Melburn Richard Bonnell U.S. Army Served 9/8/42 - 10/26/45 Passed Away 5/6/1984
George W. Brooks U.S. Army Served 1956-1958 - Germany
Bill Reigle Discussing his infantry training
REIGLE cont’d from page 3 That changed one day in PE class, when the new Dixon High School basketball coach, Lee Davison, asked Reigle whether he played on the DHS team. He said no, that he was a farm kid and had chores to do after school. “I didn’t see an organized basketball game until I started high school, but I really enjoyed going to the games,” Reigle said. “I thought, ‘Boy, how fantastic it would be to be on a team like that,’ but I never attempted to get on it.” Davison persisted, and eventually Reigle was able to join the Dukes’ basketball team as a senior. He almost found the game easy, compared to how he had learned it growing up: on a crowded barn floor. “Usually we were shooting over a piece of equipment,” Reigle said. “When I got to playing basketball in high school, I thought a guy standing in front of me wasn’t very intimidating compared to a manure spreader or a truck.” Reigle was an immediate starter for the Dukes, and was the team’s leading scorer at the regional tournament. That taste of organized basketball led him to walk on to the Illinois State University team, where he was a starter for the JV as a freshman. He studied agriculture, played basketball and thoroughly enjoyed his freshman year at ISU. Soon, however, a bigger calling beckoned. “The Korean War started a month after I finished my freshman year,” Reigle said, “and I made up my mind then. I had a cousin who was a Marine in World War II, and he always impressed me. Everybody said, ‘Well, why do you want to be a Marine?’ I said, ‘I just think it’s the best branch to be in, the most elite.’ “They were always noted for taking care of their people, which they do. They train you well.” That Marine training began at Parris Island, South Carolina for 2 months of boot camp, beginning Feb. 2, 1951. He described it an “eye-opener” as there was absolutely no messing around. It was constant training, constant physical activity and no liberties, such as heading into town to chase girls or hang out. “Their purpose is to bring everybody to the same level, whether you’re a college graduate or a dumbbell,” Reigle said. “To build a
Liberty Court
Honors All Veterans Who Have Served.
unit, you can’t have favorites here or there or the next place. They want everybody to be on the same page. If you’re high, they’re going to knock you down, and if you’re low, they’re going to bring you up so they have you on the same level.” The next stop was Camp Pendleton in California for infantry training. There was lots of marching and other physical training. They also had simulated battles on hilly terrain like they would see in Korea. Camp Pendleton is also where Reigle got a heavy dose of the discipline Marines are noted for. First, there is water. Safe, fresh water was scarce in Korea, and Marines were trained to get by without it. “We started out with having whatever water we wanted,” Reigle said. “Gradually as we went through our training, we got down to where we’d go on a 10-mile hike and we’d have half a canteen to last the whole day – eating, cooking, shaving, whatever we wanted to do. This is what you’re going to be faced with. That’s the one thing that’s as remarkable as anything, how we were able to discipline ourselves to do that.” Being clean-shaven is also a staple of being a Marine, as Reigle found out. There was an inspection each morning at Camp Pendleton, and each soldier was expected to be clean-shaven. One time, Reigle shaved late the previous night, and was a bit scruffy in the morning. A commander didn’t go for that. “He said, ‘The orders are to shave every day, and that was yesterday. This is today,’” Reigle said. “I was a squad leader of our group at the time. He said, ‘You go to the back of the line. We can’t have someone like you leading this squad that doesn’t follow orders.’ So I went to the end of the line. “The next morning we have inspection again. He came down the line and got to me at the end and said, ‘You shaved this morning, didn’t you?’ I said, ‘Yes sir, I did. I learned my lesson.’ He said, ‘Go back to the head of the line.’ I learned to shave every day.” In mid-July 1951, Reigle left Camp Pandleton for a month-long journey by troop ship to Pusan, South Korea. Two things stood out about the journey.
REIGLE cont’d on page 8
Honoring your Service, Remembering your Sacrifice… Thank you to America’s Veterans for your ongoing Dedication to our Country and your Commitment to Preserving our Precious Freedom.
Front Row: Ida Johnson, Jane Cornelius, Melvin Leffelman, Sylvan Leffelman Back Row: Larry McPherson, Seymour Halford, Ralph Flynn, Leon Boehle, Harold Johnson
Liberty Court Assisted Living & Memory Care 124 Liberty Court | Dixon, IL 61021 815.285.2000 | www.libertycourtseniorliving.com
The First National Bank in Amboy Amboy • Dixon • Franklin Grove • Monroe Center www.fnbamboy.com fnba bamb mb
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815-857-3625
7 SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
We started out with having whatever water we wanted. Gradually as we went through our training, we got down to where we’d go on a 10-mile hike and we’d have half a canteen to last the whole day – eating, cooking, shaving, whatever we wanted to do. This is what you’re going to be faced with. That’s the one thing that’s as remarkable as anything, how we were able to discipline ourselves to do that.”
REIGLE cont’d from page 7 First, Reigle was tipped off to volunteer for kitchen duty. There, he could eat all of the fresh fruit he wanted, to help combat seasickness. “That helped me,” Reigle said. “I never got seasick anyway.” Second, Reigle realized how well-prepared he was for what was ahead, based on his training at Parris Island and Camp Pendleton. “When we were going over to Korea on the ship, there were Navy, Army, Marines – Marines were probably the minority numbers-wise,” Reigle said. “A lot of the Army guys would come to us and ask us to help them field strip their weapons, because they didn’t know how. We could do it in the dark. We could take our rifle apart piece by piece and clean it and put it back together with our eyes closed. They’d come to us and ask us to give them classes. I always felt if I wanted to be there, I wanted to be with the best.” In Korea, Reigle was assigned to the Motor Transport Battalion, First Marine Division. For the next 11 months, Reigle’s job was to transport troops, ammunition and food to the front lines, via truck. They did their jobs at night, to have a better chance of not being detected by North Korean forces. “The only roads there were what the Army Corps of Engineers had carved out of the side of the mountains,” Reigle said. “You had to follow the vehicle in front of you. We were always in convoy. There was a Jeep with a commander leading a convoy of these trucks loaded with troops or food or ammunition, whatever the need was.” Each truck in a convoy had two small red dots on the back of the vehicle – two on the left and two on the right – and the driver behind had to keep up. “That’s what was your guide going over those mountainous roads when it was pitch dark,” Reigle said. “If you dropped too far behind and couldn’t see those dots, you were lost. You had to stay within 10 feet to see that. … Sometimes it would be breaking day-
light when we’d come back and see where we had been the night before. Man, you just wondered how the heck we ever got there.” Reigle noted he was fortunate during the time he served in Korea in that his battalion avoided North Korean attacks, but others weren’t so lucky. “Convoys used to get hit,” Reigle said. “Yeah, they’d get hit every once in a while. If one would land in the bed of a truck that was loaded with ammo, it would just blow it to smithereens. That’s the chance you took. Fortunately I didn’t have that happen to me.” The second half of Reigle’s 3-year hitch in the Marines was spent in Portsmouth, Virginia, at an engineering depot. Transportation was again his duty. Reigle would pick up troops coming home from Korea and take them where they needed to go. There was also a colonel who had frequent meetings in Washington, D.C., and Reigle was his personal driver. On Jan. 31, 1954, Reigle, a sergeant, was discharged from the Marine Corps. Included in his honors were the Good Conduct Medal, the Korean War Medal and United Nations Medal. Now a civilian again, Reigle always thought he would go back to farming, but that changed quickly.
Reigle’s wife, Mary, who he had married before shipping off to Korea, worked at the Dixon National Bank. He had attended some parties there and become friendly with some of the personnel. One of those was bank president H.O. Lovett, who thought that Reigle would be ideal for a new position. “He knew I was a farm kid, he knew I had taken ag in college, and he said, ‘We’re looking for a person that knows farming, but we can teach banking. We can’t teach bankers farming,’ “ Reigle said. “[Lovett] grew up on a farm in western Iowa and came into banking out there. He said, ‘We want somebody that knows what the farmer goes through – when it rains when you don’t want it to, when it doesn’t rain when you want it to, when the tractor breaks down and you don’t have the money to fix it.’ He wanted somebody who understands what a farmer is going through.” Reigle began in bookkeeping and eventually got into lending. He retired, after 42 years of service, as a bank vice president on March 27, 1996. Reigle has served his community as well. He was on the Lion’s Club for 50 years. He spent 11 years on the Sauk Valley Community College board, including 4 as president. He spent 30 years on various Sinnissippi Center boards. He spent more than 40 years on the Heritage Square board. He’s been
on various boards at Grace United Methodist Church. He’s been active with Meals on Wheels and the Dixon Chamber of Commerce. “I did feel like it was important to be involved because I like Dixon, we’ve liked living in Dixon, and it’s been good to me an my family,” Reigle said. “I’ve always felt it was important you should contribute what you can.” Bill and Mary Reigle were married for 64 years, until she died on Aug. 19, 2015. They had three children, and there are now seven grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. Bill follows their activities as much as possible. For fun, he plays golf, usually once a week with the same group of guys. He likes to restore old tractors, and has five stored away at the family farm. He loves hanging out at that farm, doing small repairs on whatever needs to be fixed. “I had my 90th birthday in February and I just thank God for every day He’s given me,” Reigle said. “I had a wonderful wife, and I have wonderful kids. I just don’t know how much more you could expect out of life – the kids, the grandkids and now the great-grandkids – they all love me and I love them and they’re awfully important to me. I don’t know why I’ve been blessed so well, but I have. Whatever day that ends, I have no regrets.”
Robert Maltry, Agent 709 N Brinton Ave Dixon, IL 61021 Bus: (815) 288-4206
451 N Main Ave Milledgeville, IL 61051 815-225-7171
American Family Mutual Insurance Company, S.I. & its Operating Companies, 6000 American Parkway, Madison, WI 53783 ©2015 006441 - Rev. 2/20 - 13089496
We Salute Our Veterans!
This Veterans Day, we honor and give thanks to all veterans who served and sacrificed to ensure our freedom.
Remembering Those Who Served
900 N. Galena Ave. 815-288-7841
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“Over 50 years of Compassionate Christian Care and definitely worth the drive”
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SALUTE TO VETERANS
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408 Maple Ave., Morrison (815) 772-4021 www.resthave.org Resthave Home is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
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Gary Burger U. S. Army 1964 - 1966
Juan Canas U.S. Marine Corps Served 1980 - 1984
Bryan Castillo U.S. Army Served 1979 - 1989
Everett K. Brown U.S. Army Served 1963 - 1965 Passed away 1/15/2019
Curtis Bucher U.S. Army - WWI Served in France -1919 Passed Away 2/19/1955
Daniel Buntjer U.S. Air Force Served 1981-2001 Retired
Cpl. Richard E. Burgess U.S. Army Served 1950 - 1953
Gage Butler U.S. Marine Corps
Passed away 2/25/2017
Served 4 Years
Kenneth (Bud) Butterfield U.S. Army - WWII 1st Cavalry Division Served 1942 - 1946
Peme Canas U.S. Marine Corps Fox Co. 25 Served in Somalia Served 1990 - 1994
Pablo Castillo U.S. Army Air Corp Served 1943-1945
Passed away 2/05/2017
Robert Buntjer U.S. Army - Sgt. Served 1966 - 1968
Passed Away 12/4/1978
LPCL Dylan Canas U.S. Marine Corps 8th Engineer Camp Lejeune, NC Now Serving
David T. Cantu U.S. Navy Served 1969-1972
Lupe Cantu U.S. Navy Served 1980 - 1985
Lloyd E. Card U.S. Army - WWII Served 2 Years, 8 months
Joseph M. Catalina U.S. Army Served 1942 - 1946 Passed away 5/23/1994
Larry Cater Navy 1959 - 1962
Greg Cavanaugh Marines 22 Years
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Deborah L. Brown (Weslow) US Army National Guard Served 1989 - 1992
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
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Close calls
Wayne Hummel avoided a deadly field trip, was tossed around by a typhoon, and was floored when a bomb landed near him not with a bang, but a thud – all in all, a pretty eventful life for a Dixon farm boy who was worth his salt to Uncle Sam
LEFT: Wayne Hummel of Dixon sits at a table with photos of his time in the military, including the one above, of Hummel (left) and a fellow soldier sitting on the barrel of a howitzer during the Korean War. Hummel was stationed in Korea from October 1952 through November 1953, and worked his way up the ranks in his artillery unit. Michael Krabbenhoeft/ mkrabbenhoeft@saukvalley.com
BY BRIAN WEIDMAN | bweidman@saukvalley.com When it came to dealing with the horrors of the Korean War, Wayne Hummel got by with a little help from a new, native friend. Hummel, of Dixon, was a member of the Army’s 987 Field Artillery Battalion, in the middle of South Korea near the 38th parallel, surrounded by mountains. His job was to support South Korean troops with strategically launched shells, hoping to damage bridges, tunnels, roads and railroads in the fight against North Korea. There were four sections of soldiers doing that work in that area.
HUMMEL cont’d on page 14
WITH HONOR AND RESPECT TO OUR VETERANS
They are our family, friends and neighbors; everyday citizens, yet so much more. On Veterans Day, we take this opportunity to say thank you to the brave souls who have served in our Armed Forces.
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Member
1801 1st Ave. 1021 N. Galena Ave. Rock Falls, IL 61071 Dixon, IL 61021 220 E. Main St. 3210 Lincolnway 1325 17th Street Morrison, IL 62170 Sterling, IL 61081 Fulton, IL 61252
Honoring our Veterans
Thank you for your Service 1120 W. First Street, Dixon 815-284-2003
The American Legion Dixon Post No. 12, Inc.
SM-ST1827023
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Passed Away 9/4/2014
Corporal Tommy Cisketti U.S. Army - MIA Served 1945-1950 Passed Away 11/28/1950
Donald B. Conkrite Army Served 1942 - 1944 Killed in action Nov. 25, 1944
Richard L. Conkrite U.S. Army - WWII Pacific Served 1941 - 1945 Passed away 1981
Leo Chapinski Jr. U.S. Army Served 4 Years Passed Away 5/7/1997
Robert Chapinski U.S. Navy Served 1945-1947 Passed Away 9/24/2010
Sgt. Robert W. Cheshier U.S. Army - Korean War Served 1950 - 1952 Passed away 6/8/2018
Roger Chriest U.S. Army Served 1966-1967
Zealous Collins U.S. Army/National Guard Served 2 Years Passed Away 4/14/2007
Edward Conderman Air Force - Air Force Reserve Served 1978 -2000
Donald B. Conkrite Marines Served 1966 - 1968
Michael C. Conkrite Army Served 1959 - 1963
Patrick M. Conkrite Marines Served 1991 - 1995
Raymond N. Conkrite Army Served 1964 - 1967
Robert L. Conkrite Army Served 1941 - 1945
Jesse Contreras U.S. Army - WWII
Joseph “Chico” Contreras
Larry Contreras
Michael Z. Collins U.S. Army Served 2 Years
Passed Away July 23, 1964
Passed away Feb. 26, 2019
U.S. Navy Served 1958 - 1961
Ronald G. Conderman U.S. Army - Germany Served 1954 - 1956
U.S. Air Force Served 1951-1954 - Korean War
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Arthur Donald Chapinski U.S. Army Served 1948 - 1968
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
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Nelo Contreras
Ralph Contreras U.S. Marine Corps. WWII South Pacific & China Served 4 years
Clyde Cooley
Sergeant First Class Lester Cordes
U.S. Army Served 3 Years Passed away
Richard A. Cooley Air Force 1964 - 1975 Served 11 Years
Navy Phm.3C 17 months Passed Away 1973
Spec. Riley Cornwell U.S. Army 82nd Airborne Presently Serving
Robert M. Cornwell Air Force 4 Years
Sgt. Thomas Cornwell U.S. Marines, Vietnam Served 1967 -1970
Dino M. Coronado U.S. Army 23 Years
Mario Coronado U.S. Navy/Army 23 yrs. Vietnam 1967 - 1968
Harry O. Cover Army Served WWII 1941 - 1945 Passed Away 7/8/99
SRA John Craft U.S. Air Force Served 1996 - 2002
Daniel L. Cruse Jr. U.S. Navy Pacific Theatre - WWII Deceased
Elwood L. Cruse U.S. Army - WWII Served 1943-1945
M.L. “Mick” Cruse
Maurice “Pete” Cruse U.S. Army • 2nd Div. 1952-1954 • Korea
Michael J. Cruse U.S. Army Served 1986 - 1992
Roger D. Cruse U.S. Marines Served 1953 - 1957
U.S. Army - WWII Served 1941-1944 Passed Away 11/6/1996
J. Stephen Cornwell Air Force Air Police London, England 1946 - 1950 Passed Away 2017
Passed away 2001
Passed away Jan. 14, 2017
John H. Cornwell
U.S. Army - WWII Deceased
U.S. Army - 39th Field Artillery, 3rd Infantry Served 1951-1953
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William D. Cruse U.S. Army Served 1966 - 1968
U.S. Army 1st Cav. Vietnam Served 1970 - 1971
Lt. Stanley M. Danek
Harold Daniels U.S. Army Served 1958 - 1960
U.S. Air Force Served 1961-1965 Passed away 11/26/2016
Passed Away 10/12/2005
Charles Danek U.S. Air Force Served 1960 - 1964
U.S. Army Served 1966 - 1969
Wallance Darling Jr. Navy 1944 - 1945
Wallance Darling Sr. Marines 1920’s
George J. Danek
John P. Danek
U.S. Army Served 1962 - 1964
Charles A. Davis Sr. U.S. Army 45th Division Korean War
Served 1951-1953
left to right:
Earl Delhotal U.S. Army 149th Infantry 38th Division Served 1942-1945 Donald R. Delhotal U.S. Army Served 1945-1947 Passed away 5/25/2011
John (Jack) Diehl Army Served 1955 - 1958
1st Class Nathan Disher U.S. Coast Guard
Currently serving (17 years)
Robert Dempsey, Sr.
U.S. Army - Korean War Served 1953-1955 Passed away 5/17/2017
Mathew J. Docter Army Spanish American War - 2 Years Passed Away 1959
Sara DiConstanza E-6, Technical Sergeant 10 years 2000 - 2011 Air National Guard
Passed Away 5/20/1998
Brack Duncan U.S. Army - France 1917 - 1919 WWI Passed Away 1977
Michael Chester Duncan Army - 20 Plus Years Passed Away 9/27/20
Bryant “Bud” Diehl U.S. Army Served 1943 - 1946
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Paul J. Cunniff
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
SALUTE TO VETERANS
14
HUMMEL cont’d from page 10
A real life-saver ... Wayne Hummel stands next to a young South Korean boy, Lee Mo Huck, during the Korean War. Hummel recalled a time when Huck helped save the soldiers by alerting them to a minefield in area. Hummel said the boy was very helpful and was a good friend to many of the soldiers in his unit.
One day, a South Korean boy named Lee Ho Huck showed up from out of the blue. “He just wandered in one day, hungry and pretty bad looking,” Hummel said. “We took him in, fed him, clothed him – we kind of brought him into the fourth gun section for a while and put up a special place for him to sleep.” Huck, who was about 10 at the time, enjoyed hanging out with his new American friends when the war wasn’t raging. They learned bits and pieces of each other’s languages, with Huck cheerfully passing along Korean swear words. The Americans called Huck “Muscles,” because he liked to flex his slender frame and brag that he was getting bigger every day.
Hummel and his fellow soldiers soon put him to work, as he helped with odd jobs at the unit’s kitchen when not at base camp. “He was back and forth all the time, like family almost,” Hummel said. “He was real friendly, real appreciative, just a loving kid.” Huck’s value turned out to be more than companionship and scrubbing dishes. “This boy literally saved our section,” Hummel said. “We were getting overrun and had orders to retreat. Our whole outfit, gun, trucks, everything – as much as we could pack and as fast as we could do it. We were going down this road and headed toward this other valley, further back. [Huck] comes to me and says, ‘No, no, no, no.’ I said, ‘What do mean no, no, no, no?’ “
HUMMEL cont’d on page 16
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Marines - IL National Guard 1644TC Rock Falls
Served 30 years
Joseph E. Dvorak U.S. Air Force / WWII Served 1943 - 1945 Passed Away 7/10/1996
Norman Eakle U.S. Air Force Served 1952 - 1956 Passed away 4/5/2019
Carl L. Elsasser U.S. Army Company M Served 3 Years Passed away 1964
Norman L. Elsasser U.S. Air Force - Korea Served 1950 - 1954 Passed away 1968
Daniel Dunphy U.S. Army Served 2 Years
Jose P. Duran U.S. Army/Korean War Passed Away 8/13/90
John Richard Earl U.S. Army 1951 - 1955 Passed Away 2003
William Earl Airforce 1949 - 1953 Passed Away 1978
Bob Elsasser U.S. Army Served 1960 - 1966
Donald J. Erdmier U.S. Army WWII Served 1942-1945 Passed away 1/28/1980
John Erdmier Army-National Guard Served 1989 -1995
Lloyd J. Erdmier U.S. Air Force Served 1969 - 1989
U.S. Navy Served 2007 - Present
Kenneth Eubanks U. S. Navy USS Mitscher 1958 - 1962
Aaron Faivre U.S. Coast Guard Served 2016 - Present
Frank W. Faivre National Guard Served 1962 - 1964
Ralph I. Faivre Army Served 1942 - 1946
Peter Fecht U.S. Army Served 1970-1972
Robert Fecht U.S. Army WWII POW Battle of the Bulge
Passed Away Nov. 18, 1956
Jamie Espinoza
Passed away 9/26/2015
Passed away 3/15/1981
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Ventura Duran Jr
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
SALUTE TO VETERANS
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HUMMEL cont’d from page 14 Hummel immediately took Huck to his commander, where some valuable information was passed on. Huck was familiar with the area the Americans were headed to, and that’s why he was repeatedly saying no. In his travels, he had seen North Korean soldiers planting mines there. “We would have been destroyed,” Hummel said, tearing up at the fate they were spared, because of a young South Korean boy. nnn Wayne Hummel seemed destined for a life on the farm with his brothers, Chuck, Paul and Bob, and their mother, Jessie Mae. Wayne’s father, Chris, had died when he was 9. They used horses for the heavy farming labor until buying their first tractor, a John Deere, in 1941. Chuck, the oldest, held down the farm, so to speak, and was exempt from military service, but the other Hummel boys were fair game. Paul volunteered, joined the Air Force, became a pilot and flew several missions in the Korean War. Wayne and Bob were drafted, with Wayne seeing 13 months of combat in Korea. Bob’s time was spent at Fort Sill in Oklahoma, as the war was coming to an end by that time. Wayne’s service also began at Fort Sill in June of 1952, and after 4 months of training, he reported to a camp near Oakland, California, waiting for a troop ship to take him to Korea. He was in for a surprise.
Those whose last names began with letters A through H were taken to the airport, for a flight to get them to action quicker. He was told they needed “warm blood.” “They took us to the airport and put us on a plane with a USO show and flew us to Osaka, Japan,” Hummel said. After two refueling stops, the troops landed in Japan, where they soon boarded a ship for Incheon, South Korea. They then ran into a typhoon that made travel nearly impossible. “We were out there 2 or 3 days, and it should have been a really short trip,” Hummel said. Waves were tossing the ship around at will, and it would turn virtually vertical. Hummel remembers the contents of the vessel’s latrine being regularly tossed among the troops. “It was a nightmare,” Hummel said. “We didn’t think we’d ever see Korea, but we made it.” Hummel was stationed in Korea from October 1952 through November 1953, and worked his way up the ranks in his artillery unit. He went from loading a massive artillery gun, to firing the gun, then becoming a gunner, in which his job was to set the sights on whatever target they had. He’d be in touch with other soldiers in the distance, or someone in an airplane, scoping out targets. Finally, he became the chief of section, where he oversaw a crew of 7 to 9 men. “A guy got injured and they needed a
Saluting All Veterans
chief of section,” Hummel said. “They figured I was worth my salt.” Outside of a few burns on his shoulder from hot metal, Hummel was fortunate enough to escape serious injury. That’s not to say there weren’t scares, and one in particular stood out. Hummel noted the North Koreans liked to attack on holidays, or during meal time, when soldiers might have their guard down a bit. He remembers one Sunday afternoon, when he and other soldiers were simply walking from the kitchen back to their bunkers. “We started getting shelled by the North Koreans,” Hummel said, “so you take off running for the closest place you can hide out. We were just going by the No. 3 gun section. They had a bunker there, and some of those guys and us were walking together. We all took off running to their bunker.” Those bunkers weren’t much more than holes in the ground, with sandbags on the perimeter. The limited protection they offered was soon exposed. “You could hear these shells whistling in and exploding, and pretty soon they were getting really close,” Hummel said. “We were down on the floor, pulling duffel bags around us, and then we had a shell come down through the top. It went through a table and through the floor, but it didn’t explode. It made a hole in the ground, but it didn’t go off. We got the hell out of there in a hurry.” Hummel and his crew soon discovered a fellow soldier who had taken ref-
uge at the bottom of a latrine. “When we came out, we heard this screaming and hollering and finally found out where he was at,” Hummel said. “So we had to dismantle it and pull him out. Then we took out the hose and hosed him down.” The next day, a demolition crew was summoned to dispose of the bomb. It was carefully removed from the ground, and it was detonated after being taken a safe distance away. “There are some things that stick with you, and that’s one of them,” Hummel said. Hummel was discharged from the Army in March 1954. He received the United Nations Service Medal, the Korean Service Ribbon with three bronze stars, the National Defense Service Medal and the Merit Unit Citation. Hummel’s civilian life was largely spent trucking and farming, and he finally retired for good at the age of 85, a mere 4 years ago. He married the love of his life, Rita, on Aug. 2, 1952, and she died on March 14, 2020. They raised five children, and there are now 16 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. Besides spending time with family, Hummel volunteers at the Leydig Center and Meals on Wheels, and is involved with activities at Grace United Methodist Church, of which he has been a member since 1941. He was a trustee for more than 40 years, and is part of a crew that does small repairs at the church each Tuesday.
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Museum staff finds a way to reconnect WWII gunner with his war-time wings PERU – In August 1945, Bill Miller got into a B-17 for his first mission in World War II. “Hundreds of B-17s were heading for Tokyo,” said Mary Miller, Bill’s wife. “While they were in the air they got a radio message that the mission was scrubbed. They all turned around and went back to Hawaii. They went into a hangar and some officers came in and Bill Miller said, ‘Gentlemen, we just dropped the atomic bomb.’” After serving as a radio operator and gunner on a B-17, Miller returned to the Illinois Valley to raise a family with Mary – who he’s been married to for 68 years – and to work at Westclox for more than four decades. When the B-17 “Yankee Lady” was scheduled to appear at the Illinois Valley Regional Airport in Peru on Sept. 19-20, staff from The Yankee Air Museum planned to surprise Bill with
a ride in the plane. Unfortunately, Bill had to be hospitalized at Illinois Valley Community Hospital just before the B-17’s visit. However, another plan was hatched. “We had hoped very much he would be able to take the flight,” said Dave Callanan, a public relations executive for the B-17. “Unfortunately, he took ill and needed to be hospitalized before we arrived. The idea came up that if he can’t come to the airplane, we’ll take the airplane to him.” Calls were made and it was arranged for hospital staff to bring Bill to the roof of the parking garage so the B-17 could circle, giving him the chance to see the plane. “When he saw that plane, he lit up so much,” said Casey Schertz, a CNA at IVCH who helped bring Bill to the roof. “It warmed my heart. He was honored by it. That’s all he kept saying was how he felt so honored.” The plane made two low passes around the hospital for the 94-year-old veteran. “We live in the senior citizens complex and I stood out in the driveway and saw that beautiful plane right over
head,” Mary said. “I felt like I could almost touch it. It was such a beautiful gesture. “He was so elated. He was so happy that they would do such a thing.” Although Bill wasn’t able to ride in the plane, Mary was able to see the B-17 at the airport. “They took me to the plane later on and showed me where he sat, where he
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We Proudly Salute Our Resident Veterans
Robert Woodworth Merrill “Mugs” Baeza
Don Johnson
We are thankful for all Veterans and the time they dedicated to our Country.
Ian Katamay Marion Giesecke Eugene Anderson Missing from photo: John Minnier www.hw-sterling-slf.com 2205 Oak Grove Ave, Sterling (3 blocks N. of W. LeFevre) 815-625-7045 Managed by Gardant Management Solutions
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gave the Morse code and where the gun was,” Mary said. “They were just wonderful.” Callanan said veterans like Bill are a big reason why The Yankee Museum keeps the B-17s in flight. “It’s an honor for us to be able to take an aircraft – particularly one that a person has served on – and give that person due respect with a flyover.”
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SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Some Yankee ingenuity gives vet a smile
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SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
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Thank You To All Who Have Served, Especially Cpt. James Meyer. We Love You, Dad!
Lee thanks his fellow Veterans for their service, and invites you to call him for all your real estate needs, including VA Loans.
CHANDRA MEYER 815-632-7909 RYNE HOWARD 815-915-6022
LEE BARDIER 815-716-3604 Sauk Sauk Valley Valley
Sauk Sauk Valley Valley
110 E. LYNN BLVD., STERLING, IL 61081 • (815) 625-3722
110 E. LYNN BLVD. STERLING, IL 61081 • (815) 625-3722
In memory of Dale Brownlee, WWII Army Veteran 11/13/1925-10/8/1994 Thank you to all Veterans for your service and sacrifice for our freedom Vickie Gutierrez (815) 973-4444
Honoring all who have served our country
Ed Yingling US Army 1951 - 1957
Pat Yingling Nursing Corps 1946 -1950
Nancie Dempsey, Realtor 815-973-2585
Lawrence Yingling US Army Air Force 1942 - 1946
815-285-3444 124 E. Boyd St., Dixon www.crawfordrealtyonline.com
In Honor of All Who Have Served Our Country and Who Are Serving Now Bill Dempsey Realtor 815-631-4295
Thanking all men and women who have served honorably during times of
With the greatest respect to all area Veterans.
war and peace.
Matt Hermes
Karen Didier Realtor 815-973-2686
Managing Broker
815-288-4648
815-288-4648
In Memory of Master Sergeant Hal Moroney September 28, 1945 - September 8, 2011 Thank you to all Veterans for your service and giving us our freedom!
815-288-4648
Kirsten Crawford, Designated Managing Broker: (815) 973-0841 Tim Crawford: (815) 535-3444 Vickie Gutierrez: (815) 973-4444 Patti Shoemaker: (815) 994-8794 Andrea Ragan: (815) 973-4033 Cynthia Adcock: (815) 677-0934 Vicky Turner: (815) 973-5548 Lindsey Kerley: (815) 285-3444 Dan Yates: (815) 440-9524
815-285-3444 124 E. Boyd St., Dixon www.crawfordrealtyonline.com SM-ST1826347
To all of the Veterans for your sacrifices, God bless and thank you.
Troy Morse Realtor 815-973-2585
815-288-4648
Tracey DeCrane 815-677-2164 Saluting All of the Men & Women Past & Present that are Serving our Country Vicky Turner - Thank You! (815) 973-5548
Sauk Sauk Valley Valley
110 E. LYNN BLVD. STERLING, IL 61081 • (815) 625-3722
19
WE THANK YOU.
Judy Powell
Ed Hook
815-716-7450
815-499-4848
Jenni Dace
John Dorenbos
815-716-7675
1922 Tower Rd. Sublette, IL 61367 815-535-6295
511 E. 3rd Street, Sterling, IL 61081
Designated Managing Broker
Mary Lovgren Broker
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Lisa Maher
Sal Bayron
773-459-5472
312-952-3409
Marcia Kosowski
Justin Wiley
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Broker
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Thank you for supporting a Veteran-owned business! Kevin Considine
Broker Associate /Auctioneer 815-739-8155
Tina Demay Broker Associate 815-718-0956
Cynthia Adcock 815-677-0934
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Floyd Thomas Sr. served in the U.S. Army from 1951-1953
email:jerrylancaster@ruhl-ruhl.com
Thank you Veterans for your bravery and sacrifice.
Andrew Brockwell
Thanks to all that have served!
Charles Thomas Jr. serves in the Army National Guard 2000-Present. He also served in Operation Iraqi Freedom
309-743-8057
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We Salute Your Service!
Bonita Willis
Jerry Lancaster 815-626-8146
815-718-0956
www.erbes-realty.com
Any Type of Property, Any Time of Year 815-849-5476 WWW.WOODHAVENLAKES.COM
Remembering those who gave and R sacrificed in the name of peace.
Charles E. Thomas Sr. Lieutenant Colonel U.S. Army. Served from 1978-2006. Supported Desert Storm, Enduring Freedom, and Bosnia
Broker Associate 815-440-8214
Doug Weber Broker Associate 815-222-5806
Don Potts Served in the U.S. Air Force 1958 - 1978
Thank you Veterans! Vicky Turner 815-973-5548
815-285-3444 • 124 E. Boyd St., Dixon
815-285-3444 124 E. Boyd St., Dixon
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
For Your Bravery, Sacrifice, and Dedication to Our Country,
Home of the Free Because of the Brave.
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
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20
E-5 Petty Officer Eleanor (Schick) Fiser U.S. Navy Served 1989 - 1999
Chief Petty Officer Matt Fiser U.S. Navy - Seabees Served 27 Years 1994 - 2018
Lester E. Flaherty Sr. U.S. Navy Served 1951-54 Korea Served 1945-47 WWII Passed away 3/13/2016
Herb Fordham Navy E3 Seaman
Lester E. Flaherty Jr. (Mike) Navy - Sea Bees Served 1973 -1977 Passed away 2/26/2016
U.S. Army Served 1952 -1954 Passed Away 8/31/1998
U.S. Army - WWII Served 1942 - 1945 Passed Away 4/4/1982
David T. Fritts U.S. Army Served 2 Years
Brady Foose U.S. Army Served 6 Years
Dan L. Ford U.S. Army Served 1966-1968
U.S. Albany Missile Cruiser
Served 1968 -1971
Jesse Fordham U.S. Army 1944 - 1946 Passed Away 9/25/97
Scott D. Freeman Army 1993 - 2001
Mark Friday Chief Petty Officer U.S. Navy Served 26 Years
Tanner Friday Senior Airman U.S. Air Force Served 2016 to present
Taylor Friday Master At Arms U.S. Navy Served 2015 to present
David Gail Gardner U.S. Army-Air Corps Served1942-1946 Passed Away 6/15/1984
John Garrison U.S. Army WWII Served 2 Years
John (Jack) Furr Marine 1967 - 1971
1st Class Kayla (Disher) Gamester U.S. Coast Guard Currently Serving (13 Years)
Hugh E. Flynn Sr.
Robert J. Fox
Guillermo Bill Garza U.S. Army Served 1949 - 1952
21
Vincent A. Glowacki U.S Air Force Served 1966-1970 Vietnam 1968 - 1969
Richard A. Gebhardt U.S. Army Served 1956 - 1958 Passed Away 4/10/2014
Darrell J. Gray U.S. Army Served 1951 - 1952 Passed away 8/10/2017
David R. Geil U.S. Army E-5 Served 1966-1969 Vietnam 1967-1968
S/SGT. Kennard Green U.S. Air Force Served 1952 - 1956
John L. Gilbert U.S. Navy Seabees Served 1971-1973
Vernon Gittleson U.S. Army 1953 - 1955
Sgt. Amanda M. (Dempsey) Hacker David C. Gugerty U.S. Army Served 1956-1958
Illinois Army National Guard 2001 - 2008 Operation Iraqi Freedom 2004 - 2005
Everette D. Hardin U.S. Navy Served 1944 - 1945 Passed Away in 2010
Sr. Chief Randy D. Hardin U.S. Navy Served 1972-1992
CW2 Robert W. Hardin U.S. Army Wiesbaden, Germany Served 2006 - Present
Cecil E. Harrison U.S. Army Served 1955 -1957
C.M. 2nd Class Clifton Hartman U.S. Navy Served 1944-1945 Passed Away 10/26/83
Gene Hartman U.S. Marine Corp. Served 1952-1960 Passed Away 10/21/11
1SG Kyle Hacker Illinois Army National Guard 1999 - Present Operation New Dawn 2011-2012 Operation Iraqi Freedom 2004 - 2005
Douglas E. Harms U. S. Army 1968 - 1970
Frederick L. Hamburg U.S. Marines Served1944 - 1949 Passed Away 10/26/2000
Gordon E. Harris Sr. Army/Vietnam Vet 1970 - 1976
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Gunther Gassner Navy 1989 - 1993
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
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Ronald Hartman U.S. Army Served 1953-1955
Warren Heuck U.S. Army Served 1963 - 1965
Orville E. Hodge U.S. Air Force
Served 1961-1965 - Vietnam
Guillermo (Bill) Hurches Army CPL Korea Served 1950 - 1952 Passed Away 1/30/2010
Wallace Hartman U.S. Navy Served 1950-1953 Passed Away in 1999
SSGT. Harold Higby U.S. Army Served 1941-1945
3rd Class Terry L. Heeren U.S. Navy - Vietnam Served 1966 - 1969 Passed away 4/6/2018
Passed Away 1/21/1988
Eugene G. Hill U.S. Army Infantry Served in 1946 Passed Away 10/05/01
Melvin Hohn U.S. Navy Served 1960 - 1964 Passed Away 3/4/13
Jimmy R. Jackson
U.S. Navy Served 1958 - 1961
Robert Heinze U.S. Navy Served 1948 - 1952
S. SGT. Lyle R. Hendryx U.S. Army Served 1944 - 1946 Passed Away 11/30/2005
Senior Operations NCO with the 330th Medical Brigade 18 years
Staff Sgt. Adam G. Hodge U. S. Air Force Served 3 Years
Clarence L. Hopkins U.S. Army Served 1952-1953
Elmer L. Hopkins U.S. Army Served 1945 - 1946 Passed Away 2/4/1946
Donald Hose U.S. Army Served 1952 - 1954
Devin Jacob
Keith V. Jaquet U.S. Army Served 4 Years Passed Away 10/21/2009
Jason A. Johnson U.S. Army National Guard 1644 Transportation Co. Served 1999 - 2011
U.S. Army Served 2002 - 2005
Ryan William Hill Army Sergeant 1st Class
23
Passed away 10/05/1960
Louis King Army Specialist 3 1954 - 1956
2 Lieuenant Brett Knutson nd
U.S. Army
Harold Julifs U.S. Marine Corps Served 1957 - 1959
Elmars Kalnins Army 1951 - 1953
Col. Michael E. King
Staff SGT. Charles W. (Jake) Kness
U.S. Air Force Served 1968 - 1994 Passed away 2/27/16
Chief Petty Officer Rick Knutson U.S. Naval Reserves
Glen R. Kuhlemier U.S. Marine Corps. Served 1953-1955 Served 1953-55 Korea
Sgt. Kenny Knutson
U.S. Army
J.D. Lahman CWO U.S. Air Force Served 1955-1967 U.S. Army Served 1967-1975
U.S. Army Served WWII Passed Away 4/30/12
Jack D. Koehler U.S. Navy Seabees 1951 - 1955 Passed Away Dec. 29, 2019
Larry Lahman U.S. Air Force Served 1970-1975
Passed away 1/10/2017
Lori Lahman Kaser
Terry Kaser
U.S. Air Force Served 1984-2004
U.S. Air Force Served 1981-2001
Bruce Knipple
Petty Officer 2nd Class Jana (Johnston) Knutson
U.S. National Guard Served 1948 -1951
Navy HM2 (SW/AW) Served 2001 - 2007
Donald Lee Kohl
Nicholas Todd Kohl U.S. Army
U.S. Navy Served 1955 - 1957
Served 1995 - 1997, 2005 - 2006
Paul Lahman
U.S. Army Served 1957-1960 U.S. Air Force Served 1961-1978
Robert Lahman
U.S. Air Force Served 1968-1972
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Russell H. Johnson U.S. Army Served 3 Years
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
SALUTE TO VETERANS
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U.S. Marines Served 1951-1953 Passed Away 7/25/2012
Cory L. Lance U.S. Air Force Served 1993 -1997
U.S. Marine Corp Served 1954 - 1957
Leslie E. (Pete) Lansford U.S. Air Force 1942-1945 Passed Away 12/8/1980
Sylvan J. Leffelman U.S. Army Served 2 years 1951-1953
SFC William J. Lemmer U.S. Army Reserve Served 9 Years
Spec. 5 Dale W. Letcher U.S. Army - Vietnam War Served 1968 -1972
Craig E. Lewis Air Force - Tech. Sgt. Served 1974-1994
Russell Lahman
Roger Landreth
Joseph LeBlanc III U.S. Army Served 2 Years
Randy J. Lilly U.S. Air Force Served 3 Years
Brandon Love
Navy 3 Years Jackie Marvin Linton U.S. Army Served 1951-1953 Passed Away 4/3/2009
Alfred S. Lopez U.S. Navy Served 1945-1947
Lt. Zachary Lyth and Warrant Officer Emily (Hoffman) Lyth U.S. National Guard - 1 tour in Afganistan each Both have served 14 Years
Jesse P. Lopez U.S. Army Served 1963-1966
Joseph M. Mango U.S. Army 4 Years
Vincent S. Lopez U.S. Navy Served 1943 - 1945
2017 - Present
Kathryn A. (Faivre) Manion Navy Served 1997 - 2004
Harold Marshall U.S. Army Air Force WWII Served 1943 - 1946 Passed 10/31/2008
Passed away 2006
Blue Star marker along Route 2 in Ogle County was installed 50 years ago SVM Staff Report It looks like someone didn’t have much respect for some military top brass along state Route 2 in Ogle County. A sign that had honored America’s service members for five decades has gone missing, likely stolen. State Route 2 was designated a Blue Star Memorial Highway on Nov. 4, 1970, and a Blue Star Historical Marker was placed in a picnic area off the highway, just west of Meridian Road near the Winnebago County Line. Now, that marker is missing; all that remains is a signpost. According to an Oct. 23 column in the Oregon Republican Reporter by local historian Otto Dick … “The Blue Star Memorial Program started with the planting of 8,000 Dogwood trees by the New Jersey Council of Garden Clubs in 1944 as a living memorial to veterans of World War II. In 1945, the National Council of State Garden Clubs adopted the program, and eventually the program was expanded to include all men and women who had served our country. A large metal Blue Star Memorial Highway Marker was placed at appropriate locations across the United States. Later, the program was expanded to locations such as national cemeteries, parks, veterans’ facilities, and gardens.
I was informed that this sign and the Banditti Sign located in another picnic area were missing. These signs were probably melted down and sold for brass. It’s a shame that these are destroyed by someone who wants to make a few dollars. Another Blue Star memorial sign was stolen just months after it was installed in Harbor City on the Pacific Coast Highway. “It took 14 years for the San Pedro Garden Club to get approval to install a Blue Star Memorial Highway sign on Pacific Coast Highway in Harbor City. Now in less than three months, its gone. One of the people who helped install the plaque drove by on Sunday and as he always did looked for the sign, he said. ‘No more sign’, only the pole was left.” I intend to talk to Rep. Tom Demmer and hopefully he can convince the State Highway Department to re-install our Route 2 Blue Star plaque. The price of a new plaque is $1,465. On May 17, 2014, the Rock River Garden Club and the Dixon Veteran Memorial Commission erected a Blue Star Historical Marker at the Veterans Memorial Park, 668 Veterans Parkway, in Dixon. This Veterans Parkway is a wonderful memorial to the men and women who served. I encourage you to visit the Dixon Memorial Park and view the Blue Star Memorial Plaque.”
Honoring the Best & the Bravest
For their courage, hard work and dedication to their country, we salute the men and women of our Armed Forces past and present. It is because of their sacrifice that America remains the land of the free, and we thank them for protecting our citizens and our country.
Submitted
This Blue Star Memorial Highway marker that stood in a picnic area along state Route 2 in Ogle County, just west of Meridian Road near the Winnebago County Line, is missing. It was installed 50 years ago, and sponsored by the Illinois Garden Club’s Blue Star Memorial Fund, in cooperation with Dixon’s Division of Highway and the Illinois Blue Star Memorial chairman.
Thank You For Serving Our Country.
Please give us a call to find out more about our discounts for veteran’s and first responders.
Wishing all of our veterans and soldiers a very happy Veterans Day.
Assisted Living Community 403 Sc Scenic ic Str Street, tr t, Morrison, M ri IL • (815) 772-4031 772-40 4031 31 • www.windsor-manor.com/morrison
107 1st. Ave. Rock Falls, IL 61071
(815) 564-9000 SM-ST1827281
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Sign honoring veterans is MIA
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SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
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Jerome (Jerry) Martin
U.S. Army Served 1966 - 1968 Passed away 6/24/2018
John E. Martin U. S. Army 1981 - 1983 Natl. Guard 1985 - 1993
Sgt. Ray Martinez
S/Sgt. Theodore R. Maves U.S. Army Served 1952 -1954 Passed Away March 2006
Gene McCaffrey
Patrick McCaffrey U.S. Marines Served 1954 - 1957
Passed Away 7/16/1995
Captain Tilghman R. McLemore
Master Gunnery Sgt. Robert J. Mena, Jr.
Dean Patrick McCaffrey U.S. Army Served 1965 - 1967
U.S. Marines Served 1989 - 1992 Passed Away 8/16/92
Kenneth McCracken U. S. Army 1944 - 1946
PFC James “Peanuts” McDaniel U.S. Army Served 1944-1945 Passed Away 1/2/88
T. F. Sgt. Anthony E. Mercer
Sgt. 1st Class Isaac M. Mercer U.S. Army - 2 Years
Larry D. Mayberry
U.S. Air Force Served 8 years
1Year in Korea 6 Years Reserves 2 Years Active Duty
William L. May
U.S. Army - WWII Served 1941 - 1945 Passed Away 4/9/1989
U. S Army Served 1965 - 1968 Passed Away 2011
Roger McCaffrey U.S. Army Served 1961 - 1964
Joseph E. McGraw Army Served 1966 - 1969 Passed Away Nov. 6, 2018
Michael Keith Mercer U.S. Air Force (E4) Served 1976 - 1980
U.S. Army Airborne Rangers 1956 - 1968
U.S. Army
Served 1961 - 1964
Passed Away May ‘68 Kia Vietnam
U.S. Marines Served 30 Years
Steven L. Mercer U.S. Marines 2 Years Active 4 Years Inactive
William Midgett Navy 20 Years Passed Away 2015
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Nicholas Richard L. Miller U.S. Army 2010 - 2014
Merrill “Bud” Mohr U.S. Navy Korean War Served 1949-1953
Gearld (Jerry) Moser Eldon Moser Air Force Served 4 Years
Joseph J. Muhleback U.S. Air Force Served 1948 - 1952
Marian Nerstheimer U.S. Army Served 1960 - 1963
Air Force Served 4 Years Passed Away 5/29/1996
Capt. Edward S. Murphy MD U.S. Army - 1941-1946 Passed Away 09/1987
Carlyle Hulger Newman U.S.Navy/USS Mount Vernon Served 1917-1919 Passed away 6/28/1958
Kenneth Moser Air Force Served 4 Years
Dennis P. Morath U.S. Army - Spec. 4 Served 1957 - 1960
Lt. Charles E. Muhleback U.S. Air Force Served 1945-1951 Killed in Korea 1/9/1951
K.J. (Bub) & Clarence Morath U.S. Army, Air Force & Army Served 1943-1945 Passed Away 1984 & 1997
Frank E. Muhleback U.S. Navy Served 1944 - 1946 Passed away 2017
Louis K. Nagy Frank Nagy Marines 2 Years
PFC William Collins Newman U.S. Army Served 1942-1945
Killed in Manila 2/19/45
U.S. Navy Served 1943 - 1947 Passed Away 11/23/2005
Steve Nagy Army - 2 Years Passed Away 3/7/20
Cpt. Charles E. Noffsinger U.S. Army - Korean War Served 1943 -1946 Passed Away 11/2/1997
Calvin R. Nutt Petty Officer E-4 U.S. Navy Served 1973 -1977
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Ronnie L. Miles U.S Army 82nd Airborne Served 1960 - 1963 Passed away 6/10/2016
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
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Sgt. Marvin J. Nutt U.S. Army Served 1966 -1969
ETR3 Robert Lee Nutt U.S. Navy Served 1958 -1962 Cuban Conflict Passed Away 2/26/1962
David J. O’Brien U.S. Army Military Police K-9 Unit Served 1967-1968
Edwin Burdell O’Neil Army 96th Infantry Served 1942-1946 Passed Away 9/8/2009
Jack E. Ohare U.S Army Airborne - WWII
Duane Olsen US Army - Korean War Served 1950-1953 Passed away 9/15/19
Felicia (Eldon) Oltmanns Air Force 2015 - Present
Pvt. David Parrot U.S. Army Served 1965-1967 Passed Away 9/24/2009
Served 1942 -1946 Passed away 6/3/2018
Loren A. Oltmanns Army Engineers Served 1952-1954
Thomas J. Paschal U.S. Army Served 1967-1969 Passed Away 1/20/1994
Gregory L. O’Brien U.S. Army U.S. Army Guard - Iraq Served 2007- 2013
Ronald J. O’Brien U.S. Army - Military Police Served 1964-1967
Daniel Lee Oltmanns U.S. Navy Served 1977-1981
Eldon D. Oltmanns U.S. Navy Served 2014 - Present
Charles Oster U.S. Army 19 mos. in Germany 1954 - 1956
Larry “Erdmier” Overbey Army National Guard Served 1963 - 1989 Passed away 1/19/2017
Michael L. Parker U.S. Army Vietnam War
Richard L.Percycoe U.S. Navy Served 1963-1967
Robert E. Personette U.S. Marine Corps. Korean War Served 1952-1954
Sgt. LaVerne N. Pessman Army - 1st Inf. Division Served 1965 - 1967
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U.S. Marines Served 1956 - 1960 Passed Away 10/24/1983
Henry Pizarro Jr. U.S. Navy Served 1951-1953 Passed Away 5/17/1992
Terry Powell U.S. Army - 2nd Surveillance & Observation Battalion
Served 2 years - Germany
Spec. 4 Frank J. Reeverts U.S. Army Served 1956 - 1959
Raymond R. Peugh U.S. Army Served 1961 -1963
Passed away 7/1/2016
SGT. Kyle D. Pletsch U.S. Army Served 2000 - 2004
Nathan Prince Army 1962 - 1975 Passed Away 2016
Kenneth L. Reglin, Sr. U.S. Army - WW II Served 1940-1946 Passed Away 5/8/2011
Anthony D. Pizarro U.S. Air Force Served 1951 - 1954
U.S. Air Force Served 1951 - 1961
Robert Pfeifer Jr. “Butch” Army 1970 - 1972
Passed Away 1/15/2009
Charles Popejoy US Army WWII Served 1943 -1945 Passed away 2/12/2017
Wayne W. Postada Army 1963 - 1966
Gerald M. Potts U.S Army Served 1963-1965
Lyle R. Reap
Allen D. Reece U.S. Army - Vietnam Served 1969-1970
Robert E. Peugh
Manuel M. Ramirez, Sr. U.S. Marine Corps. Served 1953-1956 Passed Away 3/6/91
David H. Ricklefs Air Force Served 1967-1971 Passed Away 12-29-1998
U.S. Army
Served1967-1969 - Vietnam
Ronald S. Ridenhour U.S. Army Served 1966 - 1968 Passed away 8/24/2014
Vincent G. Ridenhour U.S. Army Served 1941 - 1945 Passed Away 9/2/1993
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Charles Peugh
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
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Doing her patriotic duty Sometimes, veterans just need a place where they can pull up a seat and talk; now they have one – and it’s a barbers chair place to get a trim. Dietrich wants it to be a place where veterans can talk about their experiences in the service. When Erin Dietrich watched the 1997 film “G.I. “The barber shop isn’t about me,” Dietrich said. Jane” in high school, a thought entered her mind. “It’s to honor others and love on people, especially “I was like, ‘I could do that,’” she said. “I had a veterans, so they’re not forgotten. Not everyone will difficult time in high school and I was athletic. share, but they’ll have the chance to.” That’s the way I wanted to be.” She also wants to feature service photos of cliDietrich enlisted in the Army after graduating ents’ friends and families on the wall. from Oregon High School in 1999 and went to Fort “I think through osmosis, they’ll be able to come Leonard in Missouri for military police training. alive and talk about things,” Dietrich said. “And I’ll From there, she signed up to be a parabe able to relate. That’s one way it’ll help trooper and ended up at Fort Bragg in me. They could see a friend on the wall. North Carolina. During her five years in But sometimes, finding those photos is the service, she would spend time in Patriot Barber Shop easier said than done. Kosovo, in 2000, and in Afghanistan after 114 N. Fourth St., Dietrich has met some veterans who the 9/11 terrorist attacks.. Oregon don’t even have their pictures. Why? Now a mother of three – Houston, 15, 815-732-7700 Because, she said, some weren’t always Coralynn, 8,and Daniel, 6 – Dietrich tries Online: Find it on welcomed home with open arms after to instill in her children the lessons she Facebook their time in the service, and some have learned in the service even been mistreated, especially Vietnam “I think just don’t give up,” Dietrich said. “Don’t vets. She hopes she’ll be able to provide an open and quit. Persevere. You go through physical fitness, accepting place for veterans. especially as a paratrooper. Discipline, treating peo“Barbering is not all about the cut,” she said.“A ple well, the whole thing.” lot of it is conversation.” Dietrich recently took ownership of Short Cut When the idea of running a shop came up, DietBarber Shop at 114 N. Fourth St. in Oregon, taking rich’s mother told her she’d be great at it. Dietrich over from Cherie Slack, who had run the barber- has been a stay-at-home mom since she got out of shop in three Ogle County towns during the past 35 the Army. That night after the conversation with years. her mother, she went home and set up a Patriot BarDietrich will reopen it as the Patriot Barber ber Shop email address – and the rest is history. Shop, a nod to her time in the Army. She Veterans Day has a special meaning for Dietheld a grand opening Nov. 3. rich. She thinks of her family members who The shop will be more than just a served and the people she served with. “It’s a lot,” Dietrich said. “I think of all the people that sacrificed more than I can even fathom. I think it’s important for families and veterans. I know it isn’t Memorial Day, but I feel like it is. I remember the guys I lost from my unit. I think about my grandfather who got shot down in World War II. They saw things I can relate to, but not fully. I’m just grateful.”
BY JEFF HELFRICH
jhelfrich@oglecountynews.com
Dietrich has many memories of the civilians she met overseas, some fond and others that bother her, like the treatment of women and girls over there.
More info
“It looks right out of biblical times,” Dietrich said of some of the places she saw while serving in Afghanistan.
Dietrich plants to put some of her own military memories on display in her new barbershop in Oregon.
Patriot Barbershop owner Erin Dietrich wants her shop to be more than just a place to get a trim. It will be a place where her fellow veterans can talk about their experiences in the service if they want. “The barber shop isn’t about me,” she said. “It’s to honor others and love on people, especially veterans, so they’re not forgotten.” Here, Erin, who joined the Army right out of high school, displays a photo of her as a fresh new recruit in 1999. Photos Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
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U.S. Navy Served 1959 - 1963
Nathan Roe U.S. Navy Petty Officer E-4 Served 2001-2006
Donald C. Schafer Navy Served 4 years Passed Away 8/16/08
Ola John Schipper Army/Air Force 20 Years Passed Away 2010
Cruz Joseph Rivera U.S. Army Served 1953 - 1955
Lt. Col. James E. Rogers U.S. Air Force Served 1951 - 1988 Passed away 7/4/2016
Phillip Scheffler
Keith Robison (Robbie) U.S. Air Force 1950-1953 (Roswell, New Mexico) Passed Away 10/19/2014
Randel G. Rodriguez Army 2015 - Present
Jerold Roth
Gary G. Rumbolz
U.S. National Guard Served 1960 - 1966
Passed Away 11/1/2000
SGT. Douglas R. Schick E5 - U.S. Army - Vietnam Served 2 Years
John M. “Mike” Scholl Army Airborne (82nd) 1954 - 1956
C. David Scudder Navy 1955 - 1957
U.S. Army Special Forces
Served 1963 - 1966
U.S. Navy Served 1996-1970
Corporal John L. Schick
Melissa Macklem-Roe U.S. Navy Served Jan. 2001-Jan. 2005
Spec. 4 Jerry Lee Sanders U.S. Army Served 1963 - 1967 Passed Away 12/12/2005
U.S. Marines Served 1954 - 1957 Passed away 2016
Corporal William (Bill) Schick U.S. Marines Served 1959 - 1962 Passed away 2014
Terry Scudder Air Force 1965 - 1967
S/SGT James D. Sears U.S. Air Force Served 1999 - 2007
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
EM 3 Alex Rios
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
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U.S. Air Force Serving 1999 - Present
John Shank U.S. Air Force Served 1982-1992
Delmar Eugene Sitter U. S. Navy 1944 - 1945 Passed Away 2/18/10
John E. Sloter U.S Army Military Police Served 1967 - 1969
Ron Smith U.S. Army Served 1966-1969
Willard Gail Smothers U.S. Navy Air Corp. Served 1954 - 1957
Donald Sondgeroth Army Air Corps Air Transport Command Served 1942 - 1946
Richard W. Stangeland U. S Army Served 1961 - 1964
Tech/SGT Trenner D. Sears
Passed Away Dec. 18, 2009
Kenneth L. Sharkey U.S. Army Served 1960 -1962
Sergeant Curtis Smith U.S. Air Force Reg. AF Air Craft & Engine
Served 1970-1974
H. Oscar Snyder U.S. Army Infantry Served 1918 - 1919 Passed Away 1958
Terry Stephenitch Army Served 1966-1968
Clarence R. Shumaker U.S. Navy Served 1941 - 1945 Passed away 6/24/2015
Gary L. Sinderman Sr. U.S. Army Served 1972 - 1975
Harold J. Smith Air Force 1966 - 1971
PFC Jessie Smith U.S. Army Served 1943-1945 Passed away 2/19/2014
James L. Snyder
Army Served 1958 - 1959 Passed Away 10/5/12
Charles J. Stern U.S. Army - WWII Served 2 1/2 Years Passed Away 6/1/2012
Richard E. Snyder U.S. Army - 5th Army Served 1955 - 1958
Edward B. Stover U.S. Army (Vietnam) Served 1964 -1966
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U.S. Army - Silver Star Served in WWII Passed away 4/18/2016
SPEC 4 James Torres
HM 3 Ray Torres
U.S. Army Served 1986 - 1989
Robert L. Strenge
Clarence M. (Bud) Toms U.S. Army Served 1942 - 1945 Passed Away 1979
Served 1952 - 1954 Korea
PFC Sam Torres
U.S. Navy - Vietnam Served 1966 - 1970
U.S. Army Served 1953 -1955 Passed Away 6/16/2013
Donald D. Trent
U.S. Army (World War II) Passed Away in 1987
Army-Airborn Served 3 1/2 Years
Juan Trujillo U.S. Army Purple Heart Recipient Served 2009 - present
John Underhile U.S. Army - Germany Served 1971 - 1974 Passed away 2019
William Underhile U.S. Marine Corps - Korea Served 6 Years Passed away 1986
Carlos Urrutia III U.S. Army 82nd Airborn Served 1983-1986
Anthony O. Tranka
Sgt. Robert A. Toms Sr. U.S. Army
SPEC 4 Tony Torres Jr. U.S. Army Served 1985 - 1988
Ted Trulock U.S. Navy Admiral’s Staff, San Diego, CA
Served 1952 - 1956
A/2C Ren VanDerLeest U.S. Air Force Served 3 Years Passed Away 10/9/11
Floyd A. Toppert U. S. Army Served 1953 - 1955 Passed Away 5/21/14
PFC Tony Torres Sr. U.S. Army Served 1951-1954
David Underhile U.S. Army Served 1964 -1967
Sgt. Jeremy Vondra
Army Infantry, Fort Lewis, WA
Served 1997 -2003
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
Doug Strehlow U.S. Marines 1993-2001 U.S. Army Reserves 2004 - 2012 2 Tours of Iraq
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
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The Van Oosten Family Left to Right: Russell Blaze, Andy & Jessica with Spc. James VanOosten, Frances VanOosten, Sgt. Marvin VanOosten, Cpt. Jeff VanOosten, Cpl. Steve VanOosten, SSgt Dagan VAnOosten & SSgt. Jennifer VanOosten with Briggs, Riley & Madison, SSgt. Dane VanOosgten
Richard J. Wagner U.S. Army Served 1952 - 1954 Passed Away 10/9/2008
Ralph Weidel U.S. Army
Served 1954 - 1956
Johnny L. Walls Army 1968 - 1970 Passed Away 7/24/74
Ervin A.Walters U.S. Army Served 1942-1945 Passed away 5/18/2008
Claude “Mick” Welker
Don A. Wellman U.S. Navy Served 1952-1956 Passed Away 1/14/2015
U.S. Marine Corps Served 1942-1946 Passed Away 12/27/1983
Sgt. David L. Wagner U.S. Army Served in Vietnam
505th Inf. 82nd Abn Served 1968-1970
Allan J. Weber U.S. Marine Corps Served 6 Years
Joshua Weber Navy 2011 - Present
Howard Wayne Wellman Jr.
Howard Wayne Wellman Sr.
Army - Korean War Passed away 3-27-90
U.S. Navy - WWI Served 5 Years Passed away 4-17-74
Michael K. Williams U.S. Army
Dale R. Wharfield U.S Army Served 1953 -1955
Passed away 4/22/2017
Served 1968 - 1988 Charles L. White II U.S. Air Force 4 Years
Charles M. White U.S. Army - POW WWII Passed Away 4/10/08
William Widolff U.S. Army Served 1953 - 1955
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Roy F. Wolber Army 1966 - 1968
Colt Younger
U.S. Air Force Served 2008
Rodney Yount Army 3 Years
Cpl. Joe Wilson U.S.M.C. Served 1960 - 1964
Richard Wilson Army Served 1963 - 1966 Passed Away 2008
Jordan M. Yardley Army 2003 - Present
Marvin E. Younger
U.S. Marines Served 1948 - 1952
Donald Lee Zinke U.S. Army Served 1966-1969
Butch “Erdmier” Wines U.S. Army Served 1970 - 1975
Russell E. Wittenauer Tec 5 U.S. Army WWII 2 Years Passed Away 2/22/03
Joshua K. Yardley Army 2002 - 2012
Delbert Yocum U.S. Army - Vietnam Served 1966-1968
Brandon Yount
LaVerne W. Yount
Navy
Army
4 Years
3 Years
Richard W. Zinke U.S. Army Served 1969-1971 Passed Away 4/5/2005
Urban W. Zurliene Army 1942 - 1946 Passed Away 9/29/74
SALUTE TO VETERANS SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
SSGT Steve Williams U.S. Air Force 1968 - 1972 Passed Away 3/22/14
SaukValley.com • Saturday, November 7, 2020
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DAY HONORING ALL WHO SERVED Sterling High School Class of 1970 - Sterling, IL - Veterans Arden Meyer ‒ US ARMY Bill Ehman ‒ US ARMY Bill Rohr ‒ US NAVY Bill Searing ‒ US ARMY Bruce Ellmaker ‒ US ARMY Carol (Bibeau) Burhans ‒ USAF Craig Reigel ‒ USAF Curt Smith ‒ USAF David Brown ‒ US ARMY Dennis Porter ‒ US ARMY Don Parker ‒ USAF Elmer Linboom ‒ US ARMY SM-ST1825218
Floyd Matera ‒ US ARMY Frank Murray ‒ US NAVY Gary Janssen ‒ US ARMY George Biszak ‒ US MARINES Gina Zolli ‒ US NAVY Jack Morgan ‒ US NAVY Jim Forder ‒ US MARINES Joe Guerrero ‒ US MARINES John Cruz ‒ US ARMY Ken Teachout ‒ US ARMY Mark House ‒ IL NAT’L GUARD Mark Lewis ‒ US MARINES
Mike Broderick ‒ US NAVY Mike Hendrix ‒ US ARMY Mike Love ‒ US NAVY Ray Handel ‒ USAF Ray Salazar ‒ US ARMY Rich Shaffner ‒ US ARMY Rick Stoudt ‒ USAF Robert Hocking ‒ USAF Robert Voss ‒ US MARINES Steve Martindale ‒ US ARMY Ynes Vasquez ‒ USAF