The annual Memorial Day ceremony at Bayview Cemetery this week will have a far more personal touch to South Whidbey than previous years.
Organizers decided to break from the usual format of speakers recounting their personal experiences in the military and instead focus on 12 South Whidbey sons who died in service to their countries. Eleven of the men grew up on the South End and were killed in one of three conflicts: World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.
The ceremony begins at 11 a.m. Monday, May 29 at the cemetery on Bayview Road.
Former Marine Bob Gabelein, commandant of the South Whidbey Marines, is the keynote speaker. The idea for the format change and a greater focus on island-born veterans came from attendees of the 2016 ceremony, he said.
“That’s one of the things I don’t think is done a lot here for the local guys who were lost,” Gabelein said.
Following an introduction by the post commander of American Legion Post 141, Gabelein will talk about the following men: Stanley Simmons, Paul Applegate, Lloyd Francis, Raphael Mylly, Robert Fiske, Charles Greenshield, Thomas Poyneer, Ernest Moser, Robert Orr and Delbert Drake. Eleven of the aforementioned names are inscribed on plaques near the football field at Langley Middle School and at Maxwelton Beach Park. The plaque at Langley Middle School was installed in September 1955 by members of South Whidbey’s Veterans of Foreign Wars Post.
Using background information gathered with the help of South Whidbey students, teacher Rachel Kizer and Lloyd Carter, Gabelein will read small blurbs about who the men were and how some of them died. Some were killed by bullets, others were shot out of the sky. But all of them made the ultimate sacrifice for their country, a service that should not be forgotten, says Don Simmons. Simmons’ uncle was Stanley Simmons, who left Langley High School in 1944 at the age of 17 to join the Marines. He was killed by a sniper on Iwo Jima in 1945 while on a night patrol.
“It’s kind of humbling to know that a kid gave his life for us,” Simmons said.
Stanley Simmons is buried at the Clinton Cemetery and will be part of the Bayview service and another Memorial Day ceremony in Clinton. It’s at 11 a.m. at the Clinton Cemetery.
Organized by the Clinton Cemetery Committee, the service will include remarks from keynote speaker Navy veteran Jared Russell, a presentation by the Daughters of the American Revolution, a reading of veteran names buried at the cemetery and a flag raising by Boy Scout Troop 57.
At Bayview, Gabelein will also talk about others in the community who have served in the military.
Following his speech, members of the South Whidbey Marines will provide a color guard and rifle ceremony. Ed Donery, a Marine who fought in Vietnam in 1965 and 1966, will be among those in the rifle ceremony. He said it means a lot to his fellow veterans when people attend Memorial Day ceremonies or thank them for their service.
“It pulls on the strings of the heart when people are willing to come to an event to show their patriotism and their love for the country and support for the veterans.”
There will be a potluck open to the public after the event at American Legion Post 141. The South Whidbey Marines will also be handing out Marine Corps roses and accepting donations at Payless following the ceremony. Donations will be used to help veterans who are in the hospital or in need of help.
