About 100 people honor veterans on Memorial Day at Baker City’s Mount Hope Cemetery

Published 11:55 am Monday, May 26, 2025

By Jayson Jacoby | Baker City Herald

With the persistent soft slap of cloth in the background as hundreds of American flags flapped in the mild May breeze, about 100 people gathered at Baker City’s Mount Hope Cemetery Monday morning, May 26, to honor the country’s fallen military heroes.

The annual Memorial Day ceremony took place in the veterans’ section at the southwest corner of the cemetery.

Mike Wilson, commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Baker City, began his address with a rhetorical question.

“Society likes to use the word hero,” Wilson said. “Is there any group more deserving of the title than the more than one million men and women who have sacrificed their lives in defense of this nation?”

Wilson described the heroic actions of Jack Lummus, an All-American college football and baseball star at Baylor University who enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve during his rookie season with the New York Giants football team.

Lummus died from wounds he suffered leading his platoon during the attack on Iwo Jima on Feb. 19, 1945.

Wilson also talked about Army medic Calvin Bouknight, who was killed in action in Vietnam in 1965 and posthumously awarded the Silver Star.

“The heroes that I mentioned had earned prestigious awards and military decorations,” Wilson said. “But just like the soldiers known only to God, countless veterans have not been recognized for their bravery due to a lack of surviving witnesses who could document their final acts. They are no loess heroic.

“We are gathered so that we can remember their sacrifices and celebrate the fact that throughout our history, this great country produces such men and women of honor. We must not forget them.”

Following Wilson’s remarks, five American flags, each dedicated to a local veteran, were unfurled. They will be added to the 400 or so flags placed each Memorial Day to create the avenue of flags at Mount Hope.

Flags honor Alvin E. Stratton, Charles E. Risley, Cecil L. Benintendi, Edward C. McGinn and John M. Finch.

Doug Riggs, chairman of the avenue of flags committee, thanked the 30 or so volunteers who placed the flags Monday morning starting at 6 a.m.

He noted that there are more than 1,000 flags, and that Dani Huck has created a book that includes all the names.

Riggs also thanked volunteered who placed more than 2,000 smaller American flags Saturday morning, May 24, at the graves of veterans and Elks Lodge members around the cemetery.

Riggs invited veterans to the lodge, at 1896 Second St., each Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. for free coffee and doughnuts and a chance to talk with other local veterans.

You Might Like

Print Article

Marketplace