Veterans deserve respect in death, as in life

Veterans Day has always been an important day in my life, so it is only fitting I should write this blog the day before the 2016 holiday.
My family has history, like so many others, of men and women serving in the military.
My dad served in Vietnam, and my mother served in the military during an earlier period of the same war. Both my brothers and my uncle served in the military. My dad's dad served in World War II.
I've always had a reverence for those who have been willing to serve our country, whether they go overseas or protect us at home.
So when I heard that a Mitchell Girl Scout troop was raising money for a headstone foundation for a forgotten veteran, I couldn't help but be proud of such a young group of girls.
Troop 57005 -- a BROWNIE troop of girls in grades 2 and 3 -- volunteered to raise at least $1,000 for this service project in mid-October. With help, the troop set up a GoFundMe page to solicit donations, which came in fairly quickly.
The Brownies brought in more than $1,200, which will pay for the granite slab foundation, said Debra Emme, office assistant at the Davison County Veteran Service Office. Emme has a daughter in the Brownie troop. The project also received a cash donation of $250 from the Mitchell KOA Campground, Emme said, which is not included in the GoFundMe total.
For completing this project, the girls earn their Honor Our Veterans badges, she added.
The veteran for whom the troop raised money was William Hannett. He died in 1928 and still has a temporary marker. He is buried in a section of Calvary Cemetery in Mitchell.

This temporary marker is the only evidence that William J. Hannett,
a World War I veteran, is buried in Calvary Cemetery in Mitchell.
(Photo by Anna Jauhola)

Not far from his marker stand several others also bearing the last name Hannett. No one seems to know why William Hannett was forgotten, even though it seems relatives were not ignored.
This issue came to light last year when Jessica Davidson, Davison County veteran service officer, discovered veterans buried in the cemeteries in Mitchell did not have proper headstones.
Davidson, a veteran herself who served as a tank mechanic, said these vets deserve better than temporary markers.
Through hard work on her own time, Davidson said she was able to procure headstones and foundations for two other veterans last year -- Joseph Robert Ward, a WWI vet buried in the Old Part of Graceland Cemetery, and James M. Parker, a Civil War vet and POW, buried also in the Old Part of Graceland.

For James Parker, Davidson was able
to get a replica Civil War headstone to
place on a foundation.
(Photo by Anna Jauhola)

Jessica Davidson was able to get a bronze plaque
from the government to place in a foundation
for Robert Ward. (Photo by Anna Jauhola)

At least five other veterans buried in the Mitchell cemeteries -- all from the WWI era -- do not have proper headstones, and it has become Davidson's mission to remedy that.
"A disservice has been done for these people," Davidson said.
She added, it should be made clear, any fundraising done is only for the foundations for government-issued headstones like the bronze plaque seen above, or a flat marble headstone, which has been ordered for Hannett.
Schafer Memorials, on Main Street in Mitchell, will install the foundation for Hannett and has donated labor for the project. The money is raised, but Davidson said the foundation will not be laid until the spring when the ground warms up again.
Davidson said should they raise $3,000 total, then Schafer Memorials will be able to complete all foundations for the other five veterans as well.
Although the Brownie troop has come forward to help procure a slab for the headstone of William Hannett, Davidson is looking for others to do the same.
"I'm wondering if another service organizations like a Girl Scout troop, or Boy Scout troop or even a 4-H group, would like to help," she said.
However, should no one else volunteer, Davidson said she will likely pay out of her own pocket to get the other five granite foundations. That's how important this project is to her.

I urge everyone -- individuals, service organizations, businesses, whoever -- to donate whatever you can to this incredibly worthy cause. Without veterans who so humbly, proudly and selflessly served our country, we would not be here. They deserve our respect in death, as much as those who are still living.
You can still give to the Girl Scouts' GoFundMe page, or you can contact the Davison County Veteran Service Office at 605-995-8619.