Services salute veterans

Local schools and veterans organizations will take time to honor fallen heroes and those men and women who have served and continue to serve in the military during Veterans Day programs across Jackson County on Wednesday.

Ray Back, commander of American Legion Post 89 in Seymour, said the Legion will hold a “simple service to honor our veterans.”

That ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. at the Legion Annex and will feature Pastor Ralph Blomenberg of Immanuel Lutheran Church as guest speaker.

“It’s important to remember past and present veterans for their service to our country,” Back, a U.S. Army veteran, said. “Where would our country be today without our veterans?”

Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1925 in Seymour will take part in a Veterans Day ceremony at 9 a.m. at the war memorial at Gaiser Park. The program will feature a performance by the Seymour Middle School eighth-grade choir and will be attended by all students and faculty from the SMS Sixth-Grade Center.

“We’re going to walk over as a group and do our morning Pledge of Allegiance there,” building Principal Becky Davis said.

The VFW color guard will present the flags.

Having sixth-graders attend the program is a good way to get them asking questions about Veterans Day, Davis said.

“They need to know what the war memorial and this holiday is all about,” she added. “They pass by there every day on the bus and they may have relatives’ names that are listed there that they don’t even know about.”

Guest speakers will include Mayor Craig Luedeman and Freeman Municipal Airport manager Don Furlow, who will speak about the history of the war memorial and why it was created.

VFW member Troy Arthur is in charge of the color guard and said he is glad to see a younger generation taking part in Veterans Day.

“They don’t teach this much in school anymore, so this gives them a reason to start asking questions,” Arthur said.

He said Veterans Day is “mainly about remembrance and showing that we still support what our troops are doing today.”

Arthur spent 20 years in the U.S. Army and served during Desert Storm.

Later on in the day, at 1:30 and 2:15 p.m., the SMS seventh- and eighth-graders will take part in a Veterans Day program at the middle school.

Superintendent Teran Armstrong will be the guest speaker and will be answering students’ questions about being in the army and what Veterans Day means.

Armstrong served in the Indiana Army National Guard.

“We’ve invited local veterans to join us and they will be introduced during the convocations,” SMS Principal Doug McClure said. “It will be a lot of good information, so it’s not only observing veterans but it’s an educational experience for our students as well.”

Other Seymour schools holding Veterans Day programs include Emerson Elementary School at 9:15 a.m. and Cortland Elementary School at 10:20 a.m. Crothersville FFA will present a Veterans Day convocation at 2 p.m. today.

In Brownstown, American Legion Post 112 and VFW Post 10807 will conduct a Veterans Day service at 11 a.m. on the front steps of the Jackson County Courthouse in Brownstown featuring music by John Spurgeon and a commemorative address by Joe Robertson.

Veterans of Foreign Wars in Crothersville will conduct a Veterans Day ceremony at 11 a.m. Wednesday at the post, 105 W. Main St.

Commander Walter Mosley said a choir from Crothersville schools will attend the event, along with a representative from Indiana 9th District Rep. Baron Hill’s office. Local veterans’ names will be read.

The event is open to the public.

Schneck Medical Center in Seymour is celebrating its veterans with a display to commemorate what many consider the nation’s greatest heroes.

The display, sponsored by Schneck’s Employee Activity Group, features photos of employees, volunteers and doctors who have served in the armed forces.

“We have many veterans at Schneck and in the communities we serve, and our Veterans Day display is a way to say thank you to all of those women and men who have served our nation,” said Brenda Wolka, vice president of the group.

The public is invited to view Schneck’s veterans display in the hallway to the cafeteria now through Friday.