At Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, volunteers provide military honors for burials and build a veteran community
About 24 years ago on a bitter March day at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, Cecilia Seabrook stood grieving her father and said she felt "cheated" that after serving through all of World War II, he was set to be buried with only a recorded version of taps instead of full military honors because the cemetery lacked staff.
Seabrook said she was touched and will never forget when the haunting melody of taps rang out behind her, played live by a stranger that day at the cemetery in Elburn.
“He was just there, a complete stranger who had no clue who we were, and I was so touched,” she said. “It was windy out here and cold, and I thought that man came out of his nice warm house to play taps for my dad, who he didn’t know.”
That stranger was Ed Crowbie, a Marine Corps veteran who served in Vietnam and spent more than 20 years camped in his car at the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, awaiting veterans to honor. Between 2001 and 2005, Crowbie helped lay more than 2,373 soldiers to rest with his trumpet, the Daily Southtown reported in 2002.
Crowbie was one of the first members of the Abraham Lincoln Memorial Squad, founded by John Whiteside and former U.S. Rep. Jerry Weller in 2003 to provide veterans full military honors. The squad has grown to 125 volunteers and still honors veterans nearly 30 hours a week.
Even though she was not a veteran, Seabrook said she was so inspired by Crowbie that she joined the squad in 2005, and she still stood Thursday presenting the flag to mourning families.
“I thought, oh Lord, please given me an opportunity to make a difference in someone else’s life the way that man made in mine,” she said. “So by joining the squad, nobody gets cheated. They get all the shooting, and I feel like I’m really making a difference.”
The squad performs the three-volley salute, a live taps performance and the folding and presentation of the U.S. flag between 9:30 to 2:30 p.m. every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday to honorably discharged veterans at the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery.
The squad also presents families with three spent rifle cartridges representing the three volleys fired in recognition of their veteran’s service.
Cemetery assistant director Matthew Ulrich said it wouldn’t be feasible to provide full service honors to veterans without these volunteers.
Ulrich said the cemetery is one of few nationally that has a memorial squad solely dedicated to providing full military honors. When the squad is not there, he said the Manhattan American Legion Post 935 or other veteran service organizations provide services.
The cemetery also provides dignified burials, routine maintenance to headstones, the opening and closing of gravesites, the placing of remains and the entire internment process for eligible veterans and their families, he said.
At least two military members also attend veteran funeral services, usually sent from either active duty, the national guard or the reserve, said Chadd Boland, a National Guard staff sergeant.
Memorial Squad community
Cmdr. Mike Padgen of the Abraham Lincoln Memorial Squad said he has developed a real love for the squad over the years, so much so that he deeply missed it when he had knee surgery and couldn’t attend for three months.
Padgen, a part of the Tuesday squad, said volunteers typically show up the same day every week and spend about seven hours together, making each squad incredibly close and giving veterans, especially those who have lived through horrific combat, a place to feel understood.
Nonveterans can also join the squad, he said, and everyone is given three- to eight-week training.
“It’s really important to all of us to be here, and this is a beautiful thing that goes on,” he said.
About 20 volunteers stood together around a table with a dozen rifles Thursday morning, drinking coffee, helping each other with their uniforms, chatting and reading newspapers. A coffee maker and a table of food rested off to the side.
Cans of toothbrushes, paintbrushes and other brushes sat next to each rifle, which Padgen said were from the World War II era and donated by the U.S. Army.
In between the services, some volunteers played cards or sat outside together.
But at the time of each service honoring a fallen veteran, the volunteers fell silent and performed the honors in sync.
Lee Walat, a volunteer and veteran who served in Vietnam, said he remembers blood-stained field hospitals, and the Abraham Lincoln Memorial squad puts his heart at ease.
“Because, you know, there’s people that don’t understand the military and listen then walk away,” Walat said. “Veteran to veteran, you’re sharing your life and their life, and you understand your purpose.”
Padgen said a lot of the volunteers come from worn-torn times and hold memories so horrific that they refuse to talk about it.
Seabrook said she lost her nephew and uncle to post-traumatic stress disorder, and said they both took their own lives after they served. She said her father would only talk about his service among other veterans, and said the memorial squad gives veterans a place to talk.
Respect for veterans
The squad members also organize summer picnics, holiday parties and a fundraiser every year, Padgen said.
“This group shows that there’s people who care and have respect for the veterans,” he said.
Padgen said the squad still needs volunteers, and plans a golf outing fundraiser in honor of founder John Whiteside on June 24 at Inwood Golf Course in Joliet. For more information, email EckcellentChoice55@gmail.com.
Ulrich said the cemetery started placing 70,000 U.S. flags Friday on grave site for Memorial Day and plans to take down the flags Tuesday.
He also said the cemetery plans a special event to honor Renee Messelin, one of the World War I “Hello Girls,” formally known as the Signal Corps Female Telephone Operators Unit. The event is tentatively planned for 1 p.m. on July 16 at the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery.
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