Nine hundred sixty-eight in World War I. Three thousand, seven hundred fifty-seven in World War II. Two hundred and sixty-nine in the Korean War. Seven hundred and nine in Vietnam. Six in Desert Storm. Sixty-nine in Iraq. Seventy-four in Afghanistan. During Monday’s Memorial Day Celebration at the Springfield Veterans Plaza,[Read More…]
Memorial Day
USS Pueblo (AGER-2)
THE USS PUEBLO CONNECTION At my home in Wyoming, I have a bronze bust of Commander Lloyd Mark “Pete” Bucher of the USS Pueblo, which was captured by the North Koreans in January 1968 and held for nearly a year. I had the privilege of meeting Commander Bucher. Through the[Read More…]
A Footnote and Friends
Footnotes might be called the Rodney Dangerfield of American History: “They don’t get no respect.” Well, some of them anyhow. That’s a crying shame, too, because some can still teach us important lessons we could benefit from today, but only if we know about them, of course. I was keenly[Read More…]
Cub Scouts play their part in honoring veterans, POW/MIA service members
For several years, Cub Scout Pack 28 has helped Creswell VFW set up for Memorial Day ceremonies. BLYTHE HOUG/PHOTO Local Scouts and Creswell VFW Post 4039 members honor veterans – and particularly fallen and POW/MIA service members – each year out of a sense of conviction: “Memorial Day’s importance must[Read More…]
Recalling ‘Decoration Day’
BOB BECK / ROBERT’S RAMBLINGS Many of us remember our family gathering for Memorial Day when we were children. We would spend the day at the family gravesite, cleaning and weeding and leaving flowers. Then we would picnic, right beside the graves – that always kind of felt creepy to[Read More…]
Wars and names change; we still honor the courageous
Creswell’s Veterans Memorial will be silent this year. This is a day for remembrance. It was established many years ago to honor the military service members from the “War to end all wars.” In other words, World War I. I’m not a historian, so it is quite possible that the[Read More…]
Never forgotten
Bob Beck Even at age 10, Bob Beck knew he wanted to become an Army officer. His dream was West Point, but the physical requirements – namely, his height – granted only “provisional” acceptance. Typically, he didn’t take “no” for an answer, so Beck entered the University of Oregon’s ROTC[Read More…]
