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 The event was very well attended with an estimated
more than 80 people in attendance. Special guest speaker Bill Donath,
whose address focused on the First World War, then called the Great
War and dubbed the war to end all wars. Later, the Great War would
be renamed World War I.
The first Armistice Day was November 11, 1918 and marked the end of
that Great War. After the end of World War II, Armistice Day was
renamed to Veteran’s Day, but to commemorate the ending of the First
World War, the date for Veteran’s Day was maintained as November
11th.
Seats fill
early on Sunday afternoon
On Sunday afternoon, the day began with Logan County
Tourism Director Morgan Gleason welcoming visitors, then turning the
program over to Joe Schaler.
Members of the
American Legion Color Guard The American
Legion Color Guard provided a presentation of flags.
Dan Benedict with the Logan County VAC led the group
in the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag.
Before stepping aside for the singing of the National Anthem,
Benedict took just a few moments to acknowledge two Logan County
Veterans who have earned special recognition in this, the
bicentennial year of the state of Illinois.
As part of the 200th anniversary of Illinois, the state has been
compiling a list of “Born, Built, and Grown” in Illinois. As part of
that list, the Department of Veteran Affairs in Illinois compiled a
list of the top 200 veterans in Illinois, which consists of those
whom the state recognizes as having going above and beyond to serve
the veterans in their communities or to promote services and
organizations for veterans. In Logan County, two veterans have been
put on that list – Joe Schaler and Vince Long. Benedict thanked both
veterans for their service to the Logan County community.
Both men will be special guests at the 200th Anniversary Gala held
in Chicago on December 3rd.
Lesleigh Bennett
Pastor (and Veteran) Dan McQuality
Veteran C.
Wayne Schrader and Lesleight Bennett
When Benedict finished, Lesleigh Bennet performed the National
Anthem, and then Pastor Dan McQuality of Grace Lutheran Church in
Lincoln offered up the invocation. Veteran C. Wayne Schrader was
then joined by Bennett at the podium and the two led the audience in
singing “God Bless America.”
Schaler returned to the podium to introduce the guest speaker for
the day – Bill Donath. Schaler mentioned the services held on
Saturday in Elkhart for the dedication of the World War I soldier
statue and Veterans Park that has been restored. He noted that the
guest speaker on that day addressed the events of World War I and as
he spoke he held the book written by Donath on the same topic.
Schaler said that was a great testament to the quality of the book
and the accuracy of the research that others would use it as a
reference.
Donath was then called to the podium, where for the next 20 minutes,
he spoke about the impact Logan County citizens had on the war
efforts in 1917 and 1918.
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 As Donath spoke, on more than one occasion, he made mention of the
role that the Lincoln Depot had in the war. He noted that the
building in which everyone sat on Sunday was one in the same that
World War I soldiers used to ship out, and also to come home. He
would later note that in the efforts of those here in the county,
many citizens provided supplies for the Red Cross, those supplies
also shipped out of the Lincoln Depot.
Donath spent the first few minutes of his talk sharing information
about the “Logan County Honor Roll.” Holding an original copy of the
honor roll he explained that it contained all the names of the
soldiers who served, but it also contained the names of
organizations, businesses, and individuals who worked to support the
war here at home.
Donath spent only a few moments talking about the soldiers, and
spent a greater amount of time talking about the people of the
county and the tremendous show of sacrifice and generosity in their
support of the war effort.
He shared a number of stories about work done for the Red Cross,
including the creation of hundreds of bandages, blankets, socks,
gloves, and more that were sent to the Red Cross to be distributed
to soldiers overseas. He read a letter sent to the Logan County
Committee by the Red Cross thanking them for their contributions.
Donath also spoke about the fundraising efforts that took place
locally. He talked about money raised in Logan County for the
“Liberty Loan” program. The community was required to raise $684,290
for the Liberty Loan program, but exceeded that amount by raising a
total of $775,250.
The city was also given a German cannon after the war. Donath said
that there were accounts of the cannon found in local history and
that it had been placed in Latham Park. He said then the cannon was
gone. It took a while to figure out what had happened to the cannon.
There was a theory that the cannon was now in Elkhart, but it was
discovered that the Elkhart community had its own cannon. Finally he
found that the cannon had been scrapped during a large metal drive
for World War II.
All of the topics discussed on Sunday were taken directly from
Donath’s book “Generosity,” which is written about the World War I
effort in Lincoln and Logan County. The book features writings about
the individual soldiers who served and there are several chapters
written on the topic of the war effort at home.
Donath offered his book on Sunday to all veterans at cost. He
explained that he was self-published and that his cost for the book
had been $15. The book was sold for that amount after the program on
Sunday. Those who did not get a chance to attend on Sunday can still
buy the book at the Logan County Genealogical & Historical Society
or the Lincoln Heritage Museum. At those two locations the cost of
the book is $35. Donath said that the extra $20 on the price tag
goes directly to those two organizations to assist them in their
work.
After Donath concluded his speech, there was the retiring of the
flags by the color guard and a closing prayer offered by Pastor
McQuality.
Guests were then invited to stay and enjoy cookies
and coffee offered up by the tourism bureau.
Heritage in Flight
Museum Board President Rick Kidd and board member JoAnne Marlin,
with World War I items from the museum. Marlin is also on the
board of the Logan County Genealogical & Historical Society.
Display of World War
I items provided by the LCG&HS.
They were also encouraged to visit exhibits from
World War I provided by the Heritage in Flight Museum in Lincoln as
well as the LCG&HS.
Many also enjoyed a beautiful quilt placed at the front of the room
by Stacie Wachtel. The patriotic quilt drew a lot of attention as
many went to get a closer look and some were even seen posing for
pictures in front of the quilt.
In all, the day was quite successful and many enjoyed spending time
in the Depot and noted that the building holds a key location in the
history of the community.
[Nila Smith] |
