Copyright Shaw Local Enewspapers
From Momence’s Col. James Kasler, a highly decorated U.S. Air Force veteran, to famous actor Jimmy Stewart, a U.S. Army Air Corps veteran, the stories of veterans were front and center Tuesday morning. Dozens gathered to hear these stories and more during the Kankakee County Veterans Council’s annual Veterans Day ceremony at the Kankakee County Museum. As the colors were posted, the Pledge of Allegiance was recited, and the “The Star-Spangled Banner” was sung. An opening prayer was followed by the welcome address from Eric Peterson, superintendent of the Veterans Assistance Commission of Kankakee County. “I am proud to share the title of ‘veteran’ with an incredibly rich and diverse community of service members with stories that are simply not well-known enough,” said Peterson, a U.S. Army National Guard veteran. “[Veterans are] people from all walks of life – every race, religion and creed – managing to put all of their personal differences aside in an effort to dedicate themselves to a purpose bigger than themselves,” Peterson said. By sharing their stories, the community is celebrating their character along with lessons that they’ve been taught, Peterson said. “Veterans have shaped our communities, both locally and beyond,” he said. One of those local veterans included speaker Donell Austin, a U.S. Army veteran and deputy chief of the Kankakee Police Department. “I stand before you today to remind us that freedom is not free,” Austin said. “It has been paid for with the blood, sweat and tears of our veterans and their families. “The sacrifices made by the few have blessed the many, and we have gathered here today to honor and thank them for their sacrifice.” Austin, 53, who enlisted during his senior year of high school, recounted his experience of arriving to basic training, echoing the sentiments shared by Peterson. “We came from all different parts of the country and all different walks of life,” he said. ”But we all got the same shots, we all wore the same uniforms, and we all had the same haircut. “In that moment, we became part of something far greater than ourselves. We had joined an exclusive club – one bound by duty, honor and service.” A call to service The call to serve runs deep in the Austin family. He shared stories of his family members’ military service dating back to the Civil War. Austin’s story starts with his great-great grandfather, Peter Austin, who was born into slavery on a plantation in Alabama. In the summer of 1864, Peter and his brother Wiley fled the plantation to join Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman’s Union army as it marched through Alabama to the gulf. That effort, known as the “March to the Sea,” played a major role in bringing the Civil War to an end a few months later, according to World History Encyclopedia. “I can only imagine the pride they must have felt of returning home to a family that had finally been freed thanks to the collective efforts of the Union army and men like them who longed for liberty,” Donell Austin said. Back in Alabama, Donell’s great-grandfather, Dean Austin, became a sharecropper on the very same land Peter and Wiley helped liberate. In 1951, his grandfather, Arthur Lee Austin, left that Alabama farmland and the Jim Crow South in search of a better life in Chicago. He married in 1952, just before being drafted to fight in the Korean War. Donell’s father, Arthur C. Austin, would be born at the Great Lakes Naval Station while his grandfather was serving overseas. Fast-forward to 1972, and Arthur C., then an 18-year-old college student, learned that he was going to be a father. “He dropped out of college and joined the Air Force to provide a better life for my mother and me, leaving behind the Chicago projects to give us hope and opportunity,” Donell said. Today, the family’s tradition of service continues on with his son, Donell Austin Jr., who joined right after high school in 2014 and currently serves in the U.S. Army. “I am, of course, proud of my family’s service to this nation,” Donell said. “But more than that, I believe our story is a reflection of what makes America strong. “Our soldiers come from the farmlands, the inner cities, the suburbs and every place in between. They serve for different reasons – economic opportunity, education, travel, to learn a trade or just sheer patriotism,” he said. “But they all have one common goal: to protect the freedom and prosperity of others. “So today, as we honor veterans, let’s remember that their service binds us together as a nation,” Donell said in closing. “Let us stand tall and thank them – for their service, their courage and their unwavering commitment to freedom.” Community service Donell Austin, who also served in the U.S Army Reserves and the Illinois National Guard from 1989 to 2003, ending his service as a staff sergeant, joined the Kankakee police in August 2000. He has come to be involved in numerous community organizations and outreach initiatives in Kankakee County and beyond alongside protecting and serving the city. One of those involvements, a youth outreach program called Days with Dads, introduced him to Peterson, CEO and founder of the veteran nonprofit Project Headspace and Timing. Peterson would take to the podium once more for closing remarks after the singing of a musical selection by U.S. Army veteran Tim Rehmer, readings of “A Soldier Known But To God” by VAC Assistant Superintendent Karen Smietanski and “East of the Evergreens” by U.S. Marine veteran David Allen, a rifle volley by the St. George American Legion, and the playing of taps. Peterson began by sharing an excerpt from a recent interview with 100-year-old Royal Navy World War II veteran Alec Penstone on the “Good Morning Britain” television show. The hosts of the show asked Penstone, “What does Remembrance Sunday mean for you? What is your message?” Penstone replied: “My message is, I can see in my mind’s eye, there was rows and rows of white stones, of all the hundreds of my friends and everybody else that gave their lives – for what? The country of today? No, I’m sorry. The sacrifice wasn’t worth the result that it is now.” Peterson paused. “I say that to you all today in hopes that you can heed Mr. Penstone’s warning, and also understand the depth of sincerity that I have when I tell you all that if you did not serve, you’re the reason why someone else did,” Peterson said. Peterson urged attendees to remember Penstone’s words when thanking a veteran for their service and work to make the community one that veterans will be proud to have served. “We are a nation of builders, growers, dreamers, doers ... and the way we take care of each other in times of need will forever stay in my heart as the reason why I was proud to serve,” Peterson said. Becoming a community that veterans are proud to serve may not be as difficult as one may think, he added. “Help your neighbor, volunteer at a food pantry or the veterans home at Manteno. Pick up a piece of garbage that you see on the street,” Peterson said. “Take note of what you have learned from the veteran community and how good it feels to put our personal differences aside to be part of something bigger than ourselves.”
