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News
 Still Talking By Eileen Brown It was standing room only inside Harbor Tower on a perfect Sunday afternoon. It seemed half the town turned out to see local writer and teacher Sharon Nicholson introduce her book Their Place in History. Invitations went to veterans she wrote about and the rest of us were ordinary folks who feel our World War II veterans ware a national treasure. She has great affection for the people she interviewed. Holding back tears, she spoke directly to those who lost a father or husband before the book could be published. Treva Carter received a book on behalf of her late husband Nick. Dorothy Baier, "Doc" Dykers (an Oak Harbor postmaster for many years), Bob Muzzall and Wes Zylstra were honored in absentia. As she called a name, an individual would slowly rise from the rows of silver-haired guests. "You survived and helped save the lives of dozens of men on the Leopoldville because you refused to obey an order," she said speaking to Hank Koetje. "Let us thank them all for their service to our country." The applause for each man and woman was heartfelt. In all, 20 veterans were honored in this anthology that will be read over and over again, and Sharon is already starting to interview other veterans whose stories she will tell in a second volume. Few of them have put their memoirs on paper and Sharon feels a pang of regret when she sees their names on death notices taped to the post office windows. Every WWII vet should consider making a permanent record. Call Sharon at (360)675-1783. Harbor Tower director Scot Ratzlaff was impressed at the large turnout and was a perfect host when inviting guests to linger in the USO Cafe set up for the event. Sharon said she knew they'd come and remarked, "Our veterans are very special to us in this community." A church like stillness hung in the air as guests hung on Sharon's words. The lone voice breaking the air was that of her 14-month-old grandson Richard Bruce Parisien. Sharon said, "I only hope he will remember this day." Retired Navy Chief Bill Thiel, Naval Science Instructor at Oak Harbor High School in charge of the NJROTC, can be proud of the precision and respoect show by his cadets as they presented Colors. At the end of the program, he read "What is a Vet?" The author is unknown and a few lines are reprinted here: What is a Vet? You can't tell a Vet just by looking. He is the cop on the beat who spent six months in Saudi Arabia sweating two gallons a day making sure the armored personnel carriers didn't run out of fuel. Some Veterans bear visible signs of their service. A missing limb, a jagged scar, a certain look in the eye. A vet can be the nurse who fought against futility and went to sleep sobbing every night for two solid years in Da Nang. He is the prisoner of war who went away one person and came back another or didn't come back at all. He is an anonymous hero in the Tomb of the Unknowns. He is an ordinary and yet extraordinary human being, a person who gave some of his life's most vital years in the service of his country. Each time you see someone who has served our country, say "Thank You." That's all most people need, and in most cases will mean more than any medals. |
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