Under a bright sunny late spring sky, dozens gathered at Burwood Cemetery on River Road in Escalon for the Monday morning, May 26 Memorial Day service hosted by the Escalon American Legion Post 263.
Guest speaker was Legion member Allan Lial, now a resident of Twain Harte, who thanked attendees for taking time out of their day to remember those who gave the ultimate sacrifice in service to their country. He noted the flags placed on the graves of veterans buried at Burwood, including Wendell Theo Eliason, shot down during the Vietnam War.
Eliason was Escalon’s lone casualty in that war, killed in action on March 31, 1965. He served in the United States Marine Corps and was a First Lieutenant. He was a helicopter pilot and was struck by hostile fire while flying a mission to evacuate injured American soldiers.
Lial, making the trip from Twain Harte to serve as guest speaker on Monday, spent 22 years in the U.S. Navy and is a retired school teacher.
“It’s my honor and privilege to be with you today,” Lial told the crowd, adding that he was born and raised in Escalon and was in the Navy from 1974 to 1996. “We’re here today to honor and mourn for all the men and women of our United States military who died while serving our country in the line of duty.”
Each person attending the ceremony was provided with a crepe paper poppy upon arrival, handed out by members of the Bad Company Motorcycle Club, based in the Central Valley, and were asked to wear them throughout the day as a way to remember those lost. Lial is a member of the club.
“Since 1921, the American Legion auxiliaries have distributed millions of these red crepe paper poppies on Memorial Day and Veterans Day in exchange for donations to assist disabled, hospitalized veterans in our communities,” Lial explained. “We aren’t asking for a donation today; this is our gift to you.”
He detailed the reason behind the poppy, explaining that in 1915, Canadian soldier Lt. Col. John McCrae was burying a comrade in Belgium when he noticed poppies had “sprouted up among the wooden crosses at the burial site,” said Lial, and that was the inspiration for his famous poem, “In Flanders Fields”.
Lial also encouraged attendees to look at the small American flags gracing the graves of all veterans buried at Burwood, including those lost in the line of duty, placed there by members of the local Legion Post.
He told the crowd that every year, “on our Memorial Day, hundreds of people turn out to honor and mourn our soldiers” during ceremonies in Belgium, to remember those American soldiers who lost their lives while fighting to help that country gain its liberation from German occupation in 1944 during World War II.
On a final note in his keynote address, Lial stressed the services offered to veterans through the Veterans Administration, noting that it is for more than health care, also providing educational benefits, disability compensation, home loan guarantees, management of the national cemeteries and more.
“Most importantly, they monitor the suicide prevention hotline. We cannot afford to lose any of these benefits,” said Lial. “Please support our American Legion Post in any way you can; this Post has a long history of giving to the local community and deserves your support. Thank you again; may God bless you and may God protect our troops.”
The brief ceremony also included the placement of a memorial wreath at the flagpole at Burwood and the lowering of the flag, then returning it to half-staff, followed by a 21-gun salute and the playing of Taps.
Legion Post Chaplain Casey Den Ouden provided the welcome and introductions, along with offering both the opening and closing prayer. Legion members then moved on to put on similar ceremonies at St. John’s Cemetery adjacent to St. Patrick’s Catholic Church at the corner of Highway 120 and Carrolton Road at 11 a.m. Monday; and at Farmington Memorial Park along Escalon-Bellota Road at noon.
