By Rick Banas of Gardant Management Solutions
As Veterans Day 2015 nears, I am reminded of two people I met on Veterans Day several years ago. Both served our country in World War II and both were living at one of the affordable assisted living communities that Gardant manages.
Lee Trainor talked with me about where he was when he heard the news about the Pearl Harbor bombing and his experience in the war.
He was living in Kansas City and had gone to Hutchinson, Kansas, for a visit. Hutchinson is located on the Arkansas River, nearly 40 miles northwest of Wichita. There was a radio playing on a small table in the lobby of the hotel where he was staying. It stopped playing, so he went over to see what might be wrong. That’s when he heard the announcement.
Two weeks later, Lee went into the service at the age of 18. He was in the second wave of Marines to land on Iwo Jima in the battle with the Japanese for this strategic stronghold. The year was 1945. He told me he watched from within a few hundred yards as our Marines raised the U.S. flag on Mount Suribachi.
He said he spent nearly six weeks in combat on the island but does not remember a single thing from the third day until the last day of combat. About 4 a.m. on that last day of combat, a live mortar landed just two feet from where he was standing. He reasons that the mortar did not explode because the volcanic soil he was standing on was so soft.
Following his discharge from the service, Lee went to the University of Missouri in Columbia and on to enjoy a career in newspapers and advertising. While working for the Rocky Mountain News in Denver, he had the opportunity to cover President Eisenhower at a ranch up in the high country.
Fred Collins, the other veteran I met, was working as a machinist at the Arsenal in Rock Island when Pearl Harbor was attacked. He served as a Fighting Seabee in the South Pacific. He was part of the Battle of Okinawa, which was the largest amphibious invasion of the Pacific campaign and the bloodiest battle in the Pacific War. Reportedly, more people lost their lives in the Battle of Okinawa than in the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Fred talked about serving in a fox hole during the battle with bullets flying and Kamikaze aircraft and mortar shells dropping from the sky. His buddy serving next to him in the fox hole was killed. Fred was awarded a Bronze Star for his service.
All of us at Gardant Management Solutions and at the senior living, assisted living, supportive living and memory care communities that we manage salute our veterans. We thank them for their service to our country and for protecting the freedoms we hold so dearly.
Next week, many of our communities will be hosting special celebrations to honor veterans.
Here are a few of the events:
Monday, Nov. 9
A veterans celebration will be held from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Deer Path of Huntley. Deer Path is an affordable assisted living community that serves adults 22 to 64 with physical disabilities. The community is located at 12500 Regency Parkway in Huntley, Illinois.
Heritage Woods of Charleston is honoring veterans with a Veterans Day Pie Social from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. The affordable assisted living community for adults 65 and older is located at 480 W. Polk Ave. in Charleston, Illinois.
Tuesday, Nov. 10
Heritage Woods of Huntley is hosting a veterans celebration at 1:30 p.m. The celebration will feature a patriotic performance by Keven Sarnwick. The assisted living community is located at 12450 Regency Parkway in Huntley, Illinois
Wednesday, Nov. 11
A Veterans Day Pancake Breakfast will be held from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. at Cambridge House of Maryville . The affordable assisted living community for adults 65 and older is located in the St. Louis Metro East area at 6960 State Rte. 162 in Maryville, Illinois.
Churchview Supportive Living is partnering with the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center to a host a Veterans Day Breakfast from 10:30 a.m. to noon. Churchview, an affordable assisted living community for adults 65 and older, is located at 2626 W. 63rd. St. in Chicago.
Eagle Ridge of Decatur is sponsoring a Veterans Breakfast from 6:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. at the Downtown Café, 217 Main St. in Decatur, Illinois. The assisted living community for adults 65 and older is located at 875 W. McKinley in Decatur.
A Veterans Day ceremony will be held at Grand Prairie of Macomb at 10 a.m. Grand Prairie, an affordable assisted living community for adults 65 and older, is located at 1307 Meadowlark Lane in Macomb, Illinois.
The Veterans Day Celebration at Heritage Woods of Belvidere will feature a musical performance by retired Harlem High School teachers Rodney and Sandie Kane. The celebration is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. The affordable assisted living community is located at 4730 Squaw Prairie Rd. in Belvidere, Illinois.
Heritage Woods of Benton is hosting a Veterans Day Pancake and Sausage Breakfast from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. The affordable assisted living community is located east of the Franklin Hospital at 1305 Bailey Lane in Benton, Illinois.
Heritage Woods of Centralia is hosting a Veterans Day Breakfast from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. The community is located at 2049 East McCord St. in Centralia, Illinois and features senior living apartments, affordable assisted living apartments, and affordable duplex homes for adults 55 and older.
Heritage Woods of Flora is hosting a Veterans Day Breakfast from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. The affordable assisted living community for adults 65 and older is located at 1003 W. 4th St. in Flora, Illinois.
The Veterans Day Celebration at Heritage Woods of Gurnee will feature a performance by the “Singing Cowboy” Rick Pickgren. The affordable assisted living community for adults 65 and older is located in Lake County, Illinois, at 3775 Grand Ave.
Heritage Woods of Manteno is hosting an American as Apple Pie Salute to Veterans at 2 p.m. The affordable assisted living community for adults 65 and older is located at 355 Diversatech Dr. in Manteno, Illinois.
The Veterans Day Ice Cream Social at Heritage Woods of McHenry will feature a performance by Kevin Sarnwick. The Ice Cream Social will be held at 2 p.m. at the affordable assisted living community for adults 65 and older, which is located at 4609 W. Crystal Lake Rd. in McHenry, Illinois.
Heritage Woods of McLeansboro is hosting a Veterans Day Breakfast from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. The affordable assisted living community for adults 65 and older is located at 605 S. Marshall in McLeansboro, Illinois.
The Veterans Day Celebration at Heritage Woods of Sterling will feature a 21-Gun Salute by the American Legion. The salute will begin at 2:30 p.m., followed by an ice cream social. The affordable assisted living community for adults 65 and older is located at 2206 Oak Grove in Sterling, Illinois.
Heritage Woods of Watseka is hosting a Veterans Day Breakfast from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. The affordable assisted living community is located in Iroquois County at 577 E. Martin in Watseka, Illinois.
Prairie Living at Chautauqua is hosting a Veterans Day Celebration from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. The affordable assisted living community for adults 65 and older is located at 955 Villa Ct. in Carbondale, Illinois.
Prairie Winds of Urbana, in conjunction with the American Legion Post 559 Color Guard, is hosting a Veterans Day celebration at 10 a.m. The affordable assisted living community for adults 65 and older is located at 1905 Prairie Winds Dr. in Urbana, Illinois.
