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QuickTake:
Memorial Day events in Eugene and Springfield brought together veterans, elected leaders and residents through tributes, music and ceremonial salutes.
Veterans, military families and community members gathered Monday in Eugene and Springfield for Memorial Day ceremonies honoring fallen U.S. service members.
In Springfield, a battlefield cross display led by Marine Corps veteran Troy Olsen took place at Willamalane Park’s Veterans Plaza.
Olsen honored Silver Star recipient Dennis Charles Daggett, a Eugene native and Vietnam War veteran. The ceremony was part of the 77th Annual Memorial Day Ceremony hosted by The American Legion Post #40.
Reading from Daggett’s Silver Star citation, Olsen described how Daggett exposed himself to enemy fire while leading soldiers in fighting against a larger North Vietnamese force in 1967.
“With complete disregard for his own life, Lieutenant Daggett led his platoon on an assault against a numerically superior enemy force,” Olsen read.
Combat medic Raymond Warner credited Daggett with saving wounded soldiers during battle.
“Lieutenant Daggett put aside all thoughts of surviving beyond that day,” said Warner’s statement, read by Olsen. “I would not likely be alive, nor would any of the wounded have survived if it were not for him and his bravery.”
Cadets from the Willamette Leadership Academy assembled the battlefield cross display using a rifle, boots, dog tags and a helmet.
“The dog tags signify the fallen soldier and that they shall never be forgotten,” Olsen said.
Springfield Mayor Sean VanGordon read the names of Lane County-area military members killed during service, including Marine Lance Corporal Michael Webb, Marine James Walter Clements and Army Corporal Jack Clinton Taylor.
“We remember the many names we carry in our hearts, including those not spoken aloud today. We honor it in how we live and how we treat people and how we carry forward the idea that we are stronger when we stand together,” VanGordon said. “As we leave here today, let us remember what we have and at what cost it was provided and let us be worthy of it.”
Lane County Commissioner David Loveall, a Navy veteran, also spoke.
“The military draws people from the varied and the diverse, but the path always points in the same direction — to defend the country and its citizens from external threats, protect national interests, and to be a responder of domestic emergencies,” Loveall said.
Eugene Pioneer Cemetery ceremony
Community members also gathered Monday at Eugene Pioneer Cemetery for a Memorial Day ceremony honoring veterans buried throughout the cemetery, including Civil War soldiers and other Oregon service members.
The service included readings of Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address and the poem “In Flanders Field,” along with song performances from the Lane Fire Brigade Bagpipe Band and the Korean Central Church Choir. During the ceremony, fighter jets flew overhead as attendees paused to watch before the service continued.
David Devin, a member of the Sons of the American Revolution, read “In Flanders Field.”
“We will forever hold tight,” Devin read. “May the nation never die.”
Devin attended the ceremony dressed in a historical military uniform representing his fourth great-grandfather, Sgt. William Devin.
“Pioneers resting in the cemeteries departed their homes, their families, their established lives in pursuit of those ideals by going west in search of a better life,” David Devin said. “Many in this cemetery literally fought for the rights and liberties of others.”
Members of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War conducted a black powder rifle salute dressed in Civil War Union Army uniforms. Several participants also portrayed historical figures connected to the Civil War.
Steven Holgate traveled from the Portland area to portray Lincoln during the ceremony. Holgate, a retired foreign service officer, said the Gettysburg Address reveals what the Civil War was ultimately about.
“It’s not for the fight itself. It’s the reason we are fighting,” said Holgate, who has participated in the event for more than a decade. “We’re dedicated to the proposition of moral liberty.”
He added that the idea that “all men are created equal” was considered radical at the time and should not be taken for granted today.