Rodney Hess (left) with his family, mother, and relatives by the brick honoring his father, A1C Patrick Hess.
WWII flag and banner over the Veterans Park during the ceremony
Charles Runner
The unrelenting rain finally stopped and permitted the Support Our Troops flag team to install 185 median flags from the main gate to the Veterans Park. At 10:00 a.m. over 140 residents and guests gathered at the Robson Ranch Veterans Park to honor our veterans, including the 1,344,000 that made the ultimate sacrifice, the 1,529,300 who were wounded and the 38,159 that remain missing in action while defending our nation. Before the ceremony, Bill and Carol Rauhauser entertained the audience with patriotic songs.
As the ceremony began, a 48-star U.S. Flag and a Chaplain’s Banner that were flown over a troop ship that transported U.S. military personnel in the Pacific were flying at half-staff along with the POW/MIA flag. At half-staff, the flag honors the veterans who have passed and, at full staff it honors the veterans who are still among us and all still serving in the Armed Forces.
Charles Runner, President of Support Our Troops, introduced the Honor Guard that consisted of seven Robson Ranch veterans who represented a wide spectrum of air and land warriors from World War II to Vietnam. They included Major Paul Brooks, U.S. Army Air Force, WWII, B-25 pilot who flew missions over Japan and witnessed the Nagasaki A-Bomb attack; Sergeant Austin Cleveland, U.S. Army, who served with the Far East Air Forces in the Philippines and Japan; Staff Sgt. Watson Crumbie, USMC, who served in combat on Saipan and Okinawa during WWII and at the Chosen Reservoir during the Korean War; Lieutenant Jim Gregg, U.S. Air Force, who flew combat missions in Korea; SGT Jim Harmon, U.S. Army, WWII, Battle of the Bulge and recipient of the Purple Heart; LTC Charles Utzman, U.S. Army, WWII Occupation Force Japan, Korea and Vietnam. He served in four airborne divisions during his career and was also an Army aviator; CW3 Quinn Sowell, U.S. Army Helicopter Pilot, Vietnam.
LCDR Gerald H. Jones, U.S. Navy Chaplain Corps, Ret, conducted the invocation and led the audience in prayer. He was followed by TAPS and a cannon salute with a Revolutionary War mortar replica manned by Historian Rodney Hess and his sons Boone and Jackson. As the flag was raised to full staff, Bill and Carol Raushauser led the audience in singing God Bless America. Robson resident and Navy Veteran Don McMahill who was recently appointed Commander of the American Legion Post 71 in Denton, addressed the audience about the role of the American Legion and thanked all Veterans for their service.
Charles then recognized the Veterans who are honored on new bricks and benches installed in the Veterans Park: U.S. Army: 1LT John Beauchamp, CW3 Ralph Beauvais, LTC Frank Bilotta, TEC3 P.H. Blaylock, CPL Jesse D. Carmichall, CAPT Mike Elliott, MAJ Jim Gant, TEC3 Horace Grimes, SSGT Herman Sanders, SGT Christopher Walker and SPEC4 James Walker. U.S. Air Force: MAJ Paul Brooks, COL Steven Carmichall, A1C Patrick Hess, 1LT Ellwood Meek, LTC Thomas Skiffington, CAPT Donald Walker, Colonel Larry Walker, CMSGT Harold White and Alger Workman. U.S. Navy: YO3 Helen Carmichall, PO1 James Carmichall, PO2 Grover Friddell and FTG3 Prever Rose. WWII British Soldier: Company Sergeant Major Herbert Jackson Mason Hilton. Special bricks honoring all Veterans of Bellarmine University, Louisville, KY and all Military Chaplains were also noted.
As the ceremony ended, James Gregg flying a vintage post WWII Canadian training aircraft provided a dazzling fly-over. He is the son of Honor Guard member Jim Gregg. The Hess mortar crew closed the ceremony with a cannon salute. The audience then visited a large display of military art, photos and other items and Veteran memorabilia in the clubhouse. The presentation spanned military history from WWI to the recent Middle East military activity. It included 14 flags presented to Support Our Troops in appreciation for their support to deployed military personnel in Afghanistan, Iraq and Jordan. The flags were flown over bases located in combat zones and aboard aircraft on combat missions. The Robson Ranch Model Railroaders set up an operational HO military train layout and a display concerning the role of the railroads during WWI and WWII.
Photos by Charles Runner.