There’s a ceremony honoring veterans of all wars who died in service to their country and it’s being held today, Monday morning, May 30th at the LZ Peace Memorial, located at Midway Village, 6799 Guilford Rd., Rockford, Illinois.

You can either park in the museum parking lot were Nick says they just put up some new signs. Or you can park in the Central Christian Church parking lot, just west of Midway Village. Park and walk over the little hill and you’ll see flags, the Huey, the Wall of Honor and some old friends.

www.lzpeace.org

A helicopter is scheduled to land at 10:30 a.m. with the program starting at 11:00 a.m. Danny Russell, who was shot down twice in the same day is the featured speaker. A friend of Rita Boothe’s will be raising the Navy flag. Go Navy. Hi to Roger Burt and Larry DuSavage.

There are 79 names on the Wall of Honor with one more being added today. . . . six of them are kids I went through grade school with. We all have friends on the Wall of Honor.

Below I’ve listed some of our classmates who served in the military during the Vietnam War. I know I’ve missed some but you’ll have to forgive me for that. Some of these guys were my best friends and some still are. Some were your best friends and I hope they still are. They say there’s nothing better than an old friend and that’s good because we’re sure getting there.

Sometime today please take the time to say a prayer for those who have died for their country and then say another prayer for those who were willing to die but were lucky enough to make it  home.

“Skip” Coad our Marine in Vietnam said: There’s no other sound like it. To us it meant, “We might get outta here alive” as opposed to, “We don’t have a fucking chance.” Pretty blunt language but he’s a Marine.

Marines Bill “Skip” Coad and Ed Palumbo, South Vietnam

The story of Dave Cumming which bears re-reading. I hope everyone reads his profile. While serving in Vietnam, Dave went inside a burning airplane. A burning airplane. He risked his life to save another’s. It could have been any of you Vietnam veterans. Or your brother, or your sister the nurse, your uncle or your aunt. Whoever Dave went in for could be someone you love. It could have been you and you don’t even know it.

It might be that man with the burned face your kids always avoided. You just don’t know. What kind of man goes into a burning hell? Someone like Hootenanny-loving Dave Cumming that’s who. Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines. That’s what they do.

top row: Tom Zander, Dave Kerno, Dave Nygren, David Hurd, Dennis Dahl  2nd row; Bill “Skip” Coad, Bob Kinney, Dave Cumming, Gean Moore, Gene Long. 3rd row: Jim Stroup, Joe Musso, Randy MacCloskey, Richard Hoffman, Roger Burt.  4th row: Ron Sisley, Sam Pagano, Tom Herschlag, Bob Kinney (again), Lee Herdman. 5th row: Old Glory, Fred Turner, Steve Holcomb, Jerry Strand, Wallis Patterson.

Do you ever wonder where your some of your old friends are? Some of them are still right here in Rockford. They’re easy to find.

Go out to Midway Village and visit the LZ Peace Memorial. Look at the Huey on the Hill. See the wall and all its names in hallowed glory.Go ahead. Walk up to the wall. It ain’t gonna bite. In fact it’s been waiting for you. Find an old friend and run your hand over his name. “Hey buddy, I been lookin’ all over for you. How ya doin’?  Man, we did some shit, huh? Now that I’ve found you I’ll come back more often. Semper Fi.”

Shhhhh. Quiet.  If you listen real hard you might hear the sound of helicopters coming in. Or it could be the sound of angels.

Or you go visit North Burritt Union Cemetery, 8300 Cemetery Road, north of Rockford off Trask Bridge Road. It just so happens that this is where Steve Holcomb is buried. If you go, remember he likes Hamm’s beer. Have a cold one on a hot day with an old friend.

Also there’s a service and a Huey landing at LZ Peace Memorial, at Midway Village on Monday morning, sometime after 10:00 a.m.

I’ll be there with some of the grandkids taking pictures and visiting old friends.

Thanks to all you veterans including my dad, Carl Nelson, and my brother, Carl Nelson II for serving our country during World War II and Vietnam. I’m sure  you can figure out who served in what war.

Believe it or not, I sang this song in church today.