WWII vet photos from bygone McHenry eatery, found in basement, will be displayed at Spirit of ’45

When the McHenry American Legion Post 491 started celebrating Keep the Spirit of ’45 Alive 14 years ago, there were several World War II veterans who joined in the celebration.

Over the years, the number of vets has dwindled, Ron Bykowski said.

“When it first started, there were a number of WWII vets who were in attendance. That is not the case anymore,” said Bykowski, who has helped organize the annual tribute. The event memorializes the end of the war, which came with Japan’s formal surrender on Sept. 2, 1945.

In the past few years, the Spirit of ’45 organizing committee has asked participants to bring photos of their family members who served during WWII to remember them during the event. This year, a special display of dozens of photos of McHenry-area men and women who fought will also be included in the array.

“We became aware of a group of pictures that were on display in one of the restaurants here,” Bykowski said. “They were of servicemen and women from McHenry and the McHenry area.”

The photos were found in the basement of a local bygone restaurant’s original owners.

That restaurant was Mi-Place Restaurant and Tavern, 121 Green St., which was a longtime local establishment run by Angela and Ernest Freund. Angela’s obituary – she died in 2013 at age 103 – noted she was a member of the American Legion Auxiliary.

After Sunday’s event, the photos from Mi-Place will go to the McHenry VFW Post 4600, Commander Ben Keefe said.

Other guests for the short service, set for 5 p.m. Sunday at McHenry’s Veterans Memorial Park, are asked to bring photos of their family, Bykowski said.

“It can be your father, your grandfather, young uncle who served during that time. Bring your photos along as a tribute to those people who have passed,” Bykowski said.

Registration for veterans will begin at 4 p.m., and Bykowski extended a specific invitation to veterans from the Korean war.

It’s not just veterans the Spirit of ’45 wants to fete, he added, but the “Greatest Generation” and the efforts done back home during the war that helped the allied troops win.

“The war was not only won by the troops, on the front lines, but through the support of the citizens back home. The spirit of the whole country at that time was about togetherness,” Bykowski said.

A band playing the Big Band tunes popular in the 1940s will play during the event, along with a 21-gun salute. “There won’t be any long speeches,” he said.

Bykowski, who entered the Air Force and played in the Air Force Band in 1964, will also play taps.

All you need to know

What: Spirit of '45 is a free event that pays tribute to the WWII generation.

When: Sunday, Aug. 11. Sign-in for veterans starts at 4 p.m., with a ceremony to begin at 5 p.m.

Where: Veterans Memorial Park, 3400 Pearl St., McHenry.

Includes: Special photo display of WWII veterans from a bygone local restaurant; taps; a 21-gun salute; music from Bill’s Little Big Band; former longtime radio host Lou Rugani, “the voice of yesteryear”; and food for purchase from the Polish Legion of American Veterans. Participants are invited to bring photos of family members were served.