thedrifter
08-07-08, 06:15 AM
Nine forgotten veterans laid to rest at Riverside National Cemetery
10:00 PM PDT on Wednesday, August 6, 2008
By JOE VARGO
The Press-Enterprise
They served honorably in World War II, Korea and Vietnam, fighting on the land and sea and in the air.
Toward the end of their lives, the nine military veterans donated their bodies to medical science to further knowledge and treatment of disease.
But for whatever reason, their remains ended up in storage at Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona after their contributions to medicine were completed.
For more than a decade, they appeared forgotten, their military and medical contributions lost with the passage of time.
Until Wednesday. While a crowd of 300 looked on, the former soldiers were memorialized and interred with full military honors at Riverside National Cemetery.
The ceremony, the first of its kind at the nation's busiest military burial ground, marked the latest in the ongoing veterans recovery program of the nonprofit Missing in America Project.
Volunteers are contacting funeral homes, coroners' offices, state and mental hospitals and medical schools across the country, searching through records to determine whether stored cremains belong to military personnel.
Retired Army Maj. Fred Salanti, executive director of the Missing In America Project, estimates the cremated remains of 10,000 American veterans lie unclaimed, sometimes known only by a number.
"Being locked on a dusty shelf is no honor," said Salanti, 60, of Redding, a Vietnam veteran. "Our mission is to bury someone who served as a soldier, as a soldier. These are the people who wrote the blank check and said they were willing to give their lives for the country. We want these veterans to know that we did not forget them, that we came and got them and that we are putting them in a place of honor."
Since the project began in 2006, the remains of about 330 veterans have been located. Salanti said the oldest date to the 1890s. But he believes it's only a matter of time until sets of Civil War remains are located somewhere.
Veterans inured Wednesday died in 1997 and 1998.
They ranged from 54 to 93 years old and served in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. Most served a hitch in the Army, Navy and Army Air Corps. One, Thomas B. Bright, of Lake Elsinore, retired as a major after a 26-year career in uniform with service in Korea and Vietnam. All were born in the Midwest and later moved to California.
Pomp and Circumstance
The procession carrying the urns rolled into the national cemetery accompanied by an honor guard of motorcyclists, some who rode down from Redding. A uniformed member of the Memorial Honor Detail carried each urn, shrouded in a dark-green covering, to the site of the ceremony, while active-duty and retired soldiers and Marines snapped to attention. A single red rose adorned each set of cremains as did the U.S. flag.
A rifle team fired a three-volley salute. A bugler played taps.
Idyllwild resident Col. Lewis Millett, 87, a Medal of Honor recipient from the Korean War, recited his own composition, "A Soldier's Prayer," which extols the virtues of military service.
"So to you who have answered duty's siren call," Millett finished to a standing ovation. "May God bless you, my son, may God bless you all."
Heroes and Humanitarians
Fontana resident Nina McCoy-Adkins, body donation program director at Western University of Health Sciences, called the nine veterans "generous and enormous people who were true humanitarians." The university used the remains for scientific study.
McCoy-Adkins located the remains after efforts to locate relatives failed. She then verified their status as veterans and worked with Missing In America Project representatives to bring the urns to Riverside National, the nearest national cemetery.
Other ceremonies, including one in which 21 sets of cremains were interred in Idaho, have taken place since the project kicked off in 2006. Without that program, she said, the cremains likely would have been scattered at sea.
The men's lives after leaving the service reflect an assortment of accomplishments and contributions.
Two went into construction, another entered the clergy, while still another worked as a machinist. One became a tool salesman and another found employment as a film producer. One sold insurance.
Navy musician Wayne Ronka, who was 92 when he died in 1999, played trombone in the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra.
"As soldiers, they fought for the freedom of others," said McCoy-Adkins, whose father, an Army Ranger, was killed in Vietnam. "As citizens, they donated their bodies to medical science, which could potentially improve the quality of life for millions of people."
Reach Joe Vargo at 951-368-9289 or jvargo@PE.com
The Honored Dead
Albert C. Bricker, 84, sergeant, U.S. Army, World War II; Los Angeles
Thomas B. Bright, 70, major, U.S. Army, Korea and Vietnam; Lake Elsinore
Rick D. Champagne, 54, specialist, U.S. Army, Vietnam; Los Angeles
Charles F. Duff, 82, master sergeant, Army Air Corps, World War I; Los Angeles
Harold F. Hanlin, 93, seaman, U.S. Navy, World War II; Pomona
Willie Jones, 88, private, U.S. Army, World War II; Los Angeles
Robert J. Mathews, 74, corporal, U.S. Army, Korea; San Luis Obispo
Kenneth O. Nelson, 68, seaman, U.S. Navy, Korea; Panorama City
Wayne W. Ronka, 92, musician 1st class, U.S. Navy, World War II; Verdugo Hills
Ellie
10:00 PM PDT on Wednesday, August 6, 2008
By JOE VARGO
The Press-Enterprise
They served honorably in World War II, Korea and Vietnam, fighting on the land and sea and in the air.
Toward the end of their lives, the nine military veterans donated their bodies to medical science to further knowledge and treatment of disease.
But for whatever reason, their remains ended up in storage at Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona after their contributions to medicine were completed.
For more than a decade, they appeared forgotten, their military and medical contributions lost with the passage of time.
Until Wednesday. While a crowd of 300 looked on, the former soldiers were memorialized and interred with full military honors at Riverside National Cemetery.
The ceremony, the first of its kind at the nation's busiest military burial ground, marked the latest in the ongoing veterans recovery program of the nonprofit Missing in America Project.
Volunteers are contacting funeral homes, coroners' offices, state and mental hospitals and medical schools across the country, searching through records to determine whether stored cremains belong to military personnel.
Retired Army Maj. Fred Salanti, executive director of the Missing In America Project, estimates the cremated remains of 10,000 American veterans lie unclaimed, sometimes known only by a number.
"Being locked on a dusty shelf is no honor," said Salanti, 60, of Redding, a Vietnam veteran. "Our mission is to bury someone who served as a soldier, as a soldier. These are the people who wrote the blank check and said they were willing to give their lives for the country. We want these veterans to know that we did not forget them, that we came and got them and that we are putting them in a place of honor."
Since the project began in 2006, the remains of about 330 veterans have been located. Salanti said the oldest date to the 1890s. But he believes it's only a matter of time until sets of Civil War remains are located somewhere.
Veterans inured Wednesday died in 1997 and 1998.
They ranged from 54 to 93 years old and served in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. Most served a hitch in the Army, Navy and Army Air Corps. One, Thomas B. Bright, of Lake Elsinore, retired as a major after a 26-year career in uniform with service in Korea and Vietnam. All were born in the Midwest and later moved to California.
Pomp and Circumstance
The procession carrying the urns rolled into the national cemetery accompanied by an honor guard of motorcyclists, some who rode down from Redding. A uniformed member of the Memorial Honor Detail carried each urn, shrouded in a dark-green covering, to the site of the ceremony, while active-duty and retired soldiers and Marines snapped to attention. A single red rose adorned each set of cremains as did the U.S. flag.
A rifle team fired a three-volley salute. A bugler played taps.
Idyllwild resident Col. Lewis Millett, 87, a Medal of Honor recipient from the Korean War, recited his own composition, "A Soldier's Prayer," which extols the virtues of military service.
"So to you who have answered duty's siren call," Millett finished to a standing ovation. "May God bless you, my son, may God bless you all."
Heroes and Humanitarians
Fontana resident Nina McCoy-Adkins, body donation program director at Western University of Health Sciences, called the nine veterans "generous and enormous people who were true humanitarians." The university used the remains for scientific study.
McCoy-Adkins located the remains after efforts to locate relatives failed. She then verified their status as veterans and worked with Missing In America Project representatives to bring the urns to Riverside National, the nearest national cemetery.
Other ceremonies, including one in which 21 sets of cremains were interred in Idaho, have taken place since the project kicked off in 2006. Without that program, she said, the cremains likely would have been scattered at sea.
The men's lives after leaving the service reflect an assortment of accomplishments and contributions.
Two went into construction, another entered the clergy, while still another worked as a machinist. One became a tool salesman and another found employment as a film producer. One sold insurance.
Navy musician Wayne Ronka, who was 92 when he died in 1999, played trombone in the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra.
"As soldiers, they fought for the freedom of others," said McCoy-Adkins, whose father, an Army Ranger, was killed in Vietnam. "As citizens, they donated their bodies to medical science, which could potentially improve the quality of life for millions of people."
Reach Joe Vargo at 951-368-9289 or jvargo@PE.com
The Honored Dead
Albert C. Bricker, 84, sergeant, U.S. Army, World War II; Los Angeles
Thomas B. Bright, 70, major, U.S. Army, Korea and Vietnam; Lake Elsinore
Rick D. Champagne, 54, specialist, U.S. Army, Vietnam; Los Angeles
Charles F. Duff, 82, master sergeant, Army Air Corps, World War I; Los Angeles
Harold F. Hanlin, 93, seaman, U.S. Navy, World War II; Pomona
Willie Jones, 88, private, U.S. Army, World War II; Los Angeles
Robert J. Mathews, 74, corporal, U.S. Army, Korea; San Luis Obispo
Kenneth O. Nelson, 68, seaman, U.S. Navy, Korea; Panorama City
Wayne W. Ronka, 92, musician 1st class, U.S. Navy, World War II; Verdugo Hills
Ellie