Fifteen minutes before the Cleveland Memorial Day ceremony was about to start at Calvary Cemetery, Legion members determined that Monday’s showers would continue, and they would have to move the service inside.
So they packed up their rifles, wreaths and flags, and, along with the band bus and everyone else, drove the two miles back to town to reunite in the new gym.
With 25 years in the Navy, guest speaker Mark Roemhildt, who is currently the Le Sueur County Veterans Service Officer, is no stranger to dealing with inclement weather, but he was glad to be inside to present his address, how at some point the individuals we are honoring “signed a blank check up to and including their very lives.”
Roemhildt told the story of Lieutenant Commander Dave Williams. On the U.S.S. Gunston Hall, an island class dock landing ship, he and Williams were both ensigns serving their very first assignment.
As young naval officers, they were responsible for navigating the ship, a task that could be daunting in the middle of the night, trying to decipher ship silhouettes and match them to radar tracks while all the time keeping the ship in safe waters.
Williams was a gifted young officer, Roemhildt said.
“With over 600 feet of ship behind you and up to 700 embarked sailors and marines, it was not a task for the faint of heart, but Dave did it with style. He was wicked smart and had a great sense of humor. He was always the guy you wanted with you when things got heated or stressful. We all knew he was destined for greatness.”
But Williams died in the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon.
Roemhildt also told of the deaths of petty officer Benjamin Johnson and petty officer Vincent Parker, who were stationed on the destroyer U.S.S. Peterson while it was enforcing sanctions in the northern Arabian Gulf shortly after 911. Roemhildt didn’t know the two but had embarked on the Peterson as a member of a destroyer squadron.
As part of an eight-person security detail to ensure sanctions compliance, Johnson and Parker were embarked on a rusty, old Iraqi oil tanker when, suddenly, in the middle of the night, the Peterson sounded “general quarters,” a situation where all available crew must immediately go to their battle stations.
“It’s something you never want to hear,” Roemhildt said.
Taking on water, the tanker quickly sank, sending the entire Iraqi crew and the eight-person security team into the pitch-black water. Despite search efforts by Navy ships, helicopters and small boats over several days, Johnson and Parker were declared lost at sea.
“So why do I share these stories?” Roemhildt asked. “I share them to drive home the point that today is bigger than ourselves. It’s about Dave, Benjamin, Vincent and so many others.”
Roemhildt went on to say their sacrifice is a call to action. The action includes paying respect to the those who sacrificed their lives, for example by attending the Memorial Day service, and taking care of others, including family members and veterans.
As a CVSO, Roemhildt says he knows that Minnesota does an excellent job caring for its veterans. For the 1600 veterans in Le Sueur County, last year’s VA expenditure for healthcare, disability compensation, pension and education was an “incredible” $17.3 million, he said.
Also during the ceremony, Cleveland Pack 15 Cub Scouts, second graders Madison Green, Jordyn Gehrke and Jordan Schummer posted and retired the colors.
Legion member Jim Beckel provided the innovation and benediction. Legion member Andy Queen led the Pledge of Allegiance.
With Queen narrating, Cleveland Troop 68 Boy Scouts junior Jackson Bowen, fifth grader Robert Hammermeister and sixth grader Geoffery Gehrke conducted the flag folding ceremony.
Saluting the dead, the Legion Color Guard Firing Squad fired off three volleys followed by seventh grader August Keltgen on taps.
Placing the memorial wreaths were Beckel for the Legion Post, Anne Hiller for the Legion Auxiliary and Greg Davis for the Sons of the American Legion. Davis took the opportunity to evoke his mother, Georgia Davis (1918-2000), a WWII Army nurse who, as a guest speaker during past Memorial and Veterans Days ceremonies, recounted her experience as a captain and Bronze Star recipient in General Patton’s army.
Under the direction of Erik Hermanson, the Junior High Band provided music, including "Armed Forces on Parade," a Hermanson-arranged medley of the songs of the six service branches: “Anchors Aweigh” for the U.S. Navy, “The Caissons Go Rolling Along” for the U.S. Army, “The Wild Blue Yonder” for the U.S. Air Force, “The Marines' Hymn” for the U.S. Marine Corps, “Semper Paratus” for the U.S. Coast Guard and “Semper Supra” for the U.S. Space Force; the "Star-Spangled Banner" and "Chorale 5."
Above: Legion members Dennis Hiller, Brian Nichols, Steve Biehn, Bob Hoehn and Jim Stoffel salute the flag.
Cub Scouts Madison Green, Jordan Schummer and Jordyn Gehrke posted and retired the colors. They are second graders.
Guest speaker Mark Roemhildt shows a bottle of sand he collected from Iwo Jima during the 60th anniversary of the battle there. He also showed sand from Normandy Beach he collected on the 60th anniversary of that battle. They remind him of the tremendous loss of US servicemen.
Robert Hammermeister, Geoffery Gehrke and Jackson Bowen during the flag folding ceremony.
Jackson Bowen holds the folded flag.
Jim Beckel salutes the wreath laid for Legion members.
Anne Hiller honors the wreath she laid for the Legion Auxiliary.
Greg Davis salutes the wreath he laid for the Sons of the American Legion.
The Legion Color Guard firing squad during the salute of the dead. It includes, from L-R, Steve Biehn, Theodore Deutsch, Don McCabe, Ryan Ponwith, Dave Voss and Kevin Derner.
August Keltgen plays taps.
Legion spokesman Andy Queen honors Steve Biehn for 33 years of service as the organization’s adjutant. In that role, Biehn kept meeting minutes and all records.
Flutists Joanna Jordan, Cassidy Otto and Kayla Hoffmann wore coordinated colors.
The junior high band.
The junior high band.
The junior high band.
After the ceremony, Mark Roemhildt showed his bottles of sand from Iwo Jima and Normandy Beach. Here, siblings Clare McCabe and Brayden McCabe learn about their significance.
Ray Keenan’s memorial at Calvary Cemetery. He died in the battle of St. Quentin Canal in France during World War I. The Cleveland Legion post is named for him.
Video: “Armed Forces on Parade”
Video: Mark Roemhildt address