At the end of the Memorial Day ceremony, members of the Honor Guard and rifle squad posed for a picture next to the memorial in the courthouse lawn. From L-R: Orvis Lunke, Rich Palmer, Jim Zimmer, Sue Westerlind, Jimmy Ford, Rodney Carlson, and Bob Mattson. Staff photos/Brian Larsen
Cloudy skies and the novel coronavirus couldn’t stop the annual Memorial Day services from being held on May 25 at 11 a.m. on the Cook County courthouse lawn. More than 60 people attended, some wearing masks, some not, but everyone kept their six feet distance from one another as the service was held to commemorate military personnel who had died while serving in the US Armed Forces.
American Legion Post 413 Honor Guard, Sue Westerlind, Rich Palmer, and Jim Zimmer, were assembled on the courthouse lawn as Post Commander Bob Mattson asked Kelly Swearingen to sing the National Anthem. Before the ceremony, Mattson placed a commemorative wreath at the front of the marble monument on the courthouse lawn to honor the ultimate sacrifice for those who gave their lives in service to the country.
Commander Mattson read the names of 13 service members with ties to Cook County who had passed away over the last year. After reading each name, he struck a silver bell with a small hammer, the sound resonating across the otherwise silent lawn until the next name was called.
Standing at attention through the ceremony was the American Legion Post 413 Color Guard. From L-R: James Zimmer, Sue Westerlind and Rich Palmer.
Mattson encouraged people to visit the graves of their loved ones who had served in the military and to think about the sacrifices they had made during their time of duty. Each of those graves is marked with a military burial flag that is provided to a deceased veteran by the US Department of Veterans Affairs as a way to honor the memory of their service to the country.
“The Chippewa City cemetery has 19 flags, Saint John’s cemetery has 26, Poplar Grove cemetery has 80 and 155 US flags mark the graves of US veterans at the Maple Hill cemetery”, said Mattson.
The ceremony concluded with the rifle squad, Orvis Lunke, Jimmy Ford, and Rodney Carlson, firing three volleys, the sound of taps from Terry Breithaupt’s bugle, and the folding of the American flag that had been presented by the color guard.
American flags are placed on the graves of U.S. veterans in graveyards throughout the country. Above are flags at the Maple Hill cemetery.
Post 413 Commander Bob Mattson rang the bell every time he read the name of a veteran who died in the past year. Mattson noted that each year there were fewer veterans left from World War ll, Korea and the Viet Nam War. Whether a veteran fought a war or served the country in peacetime, Mattson said they all deserve respect for the sacrifices they made for their country.
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