Sterling Legion remembers Pearl Harbor, 80 years later

STERLING – Members of American Legion Post 296, undeterred by the rain and cold, gathered Sunday morning to honor those who lost their lives in the bombing of Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.

The infamous Japanese attack took place at 7:55 that Sunday morning, claiming the lives of 2,403 service members and 68 civilians. It was the first attack on the nation’s soil and the catalyst for the United States joining World War II.

The surprise assault was meant to cripple the Pacific fleet, striking a significant blow for Japan. Instead, as Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto said, it brought “the awakening of a sleeping giant.”

Across the country, Americans rallied behind the war effort, eager to avenge their lost countrymen.

“When we have an attack on our shores, we need to remember that and don’t ever forget,” Sons of the American Legion Cmdr. Jerry Beranek said.

These veterans uphold the pledge made by American Legion National Cmdr. Paul Dillard: “No veteran left behind.”

“They are not left behind, for we still remember them,” said Cmdr. Susan Foss, an American Legion member for 28 years and the first woman to command the Sterling post in its 102-year history. She was a major when she retired after 20 years as an Army nurse.

“We must remember Pearl Harbor not just as the opening salvo of a long war, but we must remember it as it was: an ordinary Sunday morning in which unsuspecting American service members displayed extraordinary heroism,” she said.

“Eighty years later, we still remember them, for forgetting their heroism would be an additional act of infamy.”

Legion member Mike Wolber, 70, certainly never forgot the sacrifices made a decade before his birth.

As it has been for years, the flag folded at Sunday’s Pearl Harbor ceremony belongs to Wolber, a former Post 296 commander and a 27-year veteran of the Navy and Navy Reserves, who served four years in Vietnam and retired as a senior chief petty officer.

He spent many hours training in Pearl Harbor over the years, and although it was hard to find time to break away, on one of those trips, he and a friend took their own personal flags to the Pearl Harbor National Memorial, and had them flown over the USS Arizona, the sunken battleship where the majority of sailors lost their lives, he said.

To this day, it is the No. 1 visitor destination in all of Hawaii.

With 80 years gone, few veterans from the Greatest Generation remain to honor in person.

Gone but also not forgotten is Sauk Valley Pearl Harbor survivor Roy Phillips Jr. of Como, who always was willing to relate what he witnessed that day, so it not be forgotten.

Phillips was 20 when he worked below decks on a boiler for the minesweeper USS Trever. He was about three months away from his discharge when the bombs fell on Hawaii.

He would reenlist, then serve nearly four more years in active duty, and five as a reservist, attaining the rank of chief petty officer.

Phillips was 96 when he died five years ago, on Sept. 6, 2017. He was buried with military honors in Coloma Township Cemetery in Rock Falls.

The Legion remembrance concluded Sunday with taps, then a three-volley rifle salute rang out, honoring their long-lost but never forgotten brothers-in-arms.

About the Legion

The Sterling American Legion Post 296 is at 601 First Ave.

It has a long history of helping local veterans understand and apply for benefits, and also works to improve the community, through scholarships for high school students and community outreach programs. It takes the lead on Memorial Day and Veterans Day activities, and provides an Honor Guard for veterans funerals and community events.

The fellowship the post provides local veterans may be even more valuable, though.

When you are an American Legion member, “you’re with like-minded people,” post Adjutant Joseph Fiorini said. ”Everyone’s been through the same thing.”

Cmdr. Susan Foss agrees.

“In the military, there is a brotherhood with the people that you serve with, and you become very close. By joining the Legion, I still have that camaraderie. We help each other, and we help the community.

“So we are still helping, just in a different environment.”

Call the post at 815-625-1212 for information.