Weekend memorial ride thanks the 11 Kewanee soldiers who died in Vietnam
A former Kewanee resident will honor 11 Kewanee Vietnam veterans who lost their lives in the service of their country with a two-day memorial bicycle ride.
The trip will begin north of Springfield and end at the Kewanee American Legion on Saturday, Oct. 8. Five cyclists will carry with them on the trip two American Flags, which will be presented to the Kewanee Veterans Council.
Steve Halverson grew up in Iowa, but in the early 1980s, he moved to Kewanee, working briefly for the local radio station. He currently lives in Wisconsin, but in the early 2000s, Halverson attended a military show and reached into a basket filled with bracelets bearing the names of Vietnam veterans. The name on Halverson’s bracelet was William Marshall Price.
Halverson said he looked up information about Price and quickly found the Kewanee connection. A Kewanee native, Price served during the Vietnam War as a First Lieutenant in the Marine Corps, and was reported missing and ultimately declared dead on Oct. 12, 1972. Price’s plane crashed over the Long An province in North Vietnam and neither the plane nor his body were ever recovered.
For 20 years, Halverson has worn that bracelet and while he’s not a veteran himself, he has always been involved in veteran causes. Halverson not only wanted to mark the 50 years since Price’s plane was shot down, but acknowledge the other 10 Kewanee service members who gave their lives for their country as well. He settled on a Vietnam Veterans Ride.
“It’s kind of the war that defined a generation,” Halverson said. “I strongly believe we owe our freedoms to our veterans.”
His first task was to secure two American flags for the journey. Halverson contacted Jerry Thompson, the finance officer for the Kewanee Veterans Council, who suggested the man who might be able to help would be Illinois State Rep. Daniel Swanson, R-Alpha.
In a letter to Swanson, Halverson requested that Swanson procure two American flags for the ride, and more specifically, one that flew over the Illinois State Capital and one that flew over the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Springfield. “It is our tribute to their sacrifice and to let everyone know that they are not forgotten and that we owe them a debt that cannot be paid,” he wrote in the letter.
“He came through for us,” said Halverson, who said the flags will be picked up this week.
The roughly 67-mile bicycle ride will begin on Friday, Oct. 7 just north of Springfield. Halverson said there is no safe bike route through Springfield and for safety reasons, they will begin in Lewiston and head to Galesburg on the first day. The second leg of the trip will take them through Oneida and Bishop Hill. The plan is to arrive in Kewanee, with the flags in tow, sometime in the early afternoon.
Thompson said once the cyclists arrive with the flags at the Kewanee American Legion, a memorial service will be held. Although it’s impossible to pin down an exact time, Thompson said he is hoping that the service will begin around 2 p.m, and the public is invited.
The event will honor all 11 Kewanee Vietnam veterans who died in service of their country.
Halverson said the mission of the Vietnam Veterans Ride is to acknowledge their sacrifice and is an appreciation of their service and to verify that they are not forgotten.
In addition to Price, the event will honor Kewanee Vietnam veterans Donald E. Jones, James L. VerHelst, James E. Werderman, Dan E. Bryan, Warren R. Orr Jr., Martin J. Rapczak, Allan C. Benson, Charles Mitchell I, Rodney R. Rogers, and Alan C. DeCraene.
This article originally appeared on Star Courier: Weekend memorial ride thanks the 11 Kewanee soldiers who died in Vietnam
