By LINDSAY-JO DOUGLAS
BG Independent News
This Memorial Day, the Bowling Green community honored the three members of the Ohio Air National Guard who were killed in combat in March. Captain Seth R. Koval, Master Sergeant Tyler H. Simmons, and Captain Curtis J. Angst perished when their helicopter went down in Iraq. On Monday, their service and the service of all veterans to the country were recognized.
After the morning parade made a stop at the courthouse to lay a wreath, it proceeded to Oak Grove Cemetery for a Memorial Day ceremony. Here, Deacon Chris Harvey acted as chaplain and delivered the invocation.
“May the high cost of freedom inspire us to live selflessly,” Harvey said. The Bowling Green High School Band then played “God Bless the USA.”
Next, (retired) Colonel Greg Robinette spoke of the importance of Memorial Day. He said that more than one million people have died in combat, including the three Ohio airmen.
“For Gold Star families, mourning is not limited to one day,” Robinette reminded attendees.
Robinette said that veterans have chosen “to serve something larger than themselves” to “ensure we remain the land of the free.” He noted that 2026 marks the 250th anniversary of the country and acts as a reminder of the ideals that have shaped generations.
Robinette continued, “[Our rights] have been paid for in blood by those who willingly risked their lives to protect our lives. … As is often said, ‘All gave some. Some gave all.’ May we always remember.”
Chis Ostrowski delivered Logan’s Order, which established Memorial Day.
In part, it reads,”[This day] is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet churchyard in the land. In this observance, no form or ceremony is prescribed, but posts and comrades will in their own way arrange such fitting services and testimonials of respect as circumstances may permit.”
Mayor Mike Aspacher then delivered President Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address.
“It is for us, the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. … that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom – and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth,” the mayor recited.
Steve Benner read aloud local veteran Herbert Dettmer’s original poem, “May … and a Mother Wept.”
“Freedom was threatened, then challenged, then attacked. Freedom had to be defended. Freedom is not free. It must be paid with pain, suffering, and sometimes blood. And a mother wept,” Benner recited.
Then, one-by-one, wreaths were laid in honor of veterans and their families. A wreath was laid for fallen veterans of the Battle of Fallen Timbers, the Civil War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, all veterans of Company B 148th Infantry Battalion, all National Guard servicemen and women, all fallen soldiers, and all of the families who have supported veterans.
After the laying of the wreaths, Evvie Van Vorhis sang “God Bless America,” and Isaiah Miller read aloud his VFW competition-winning essay.
“Conversing with veterans, I understand that whether they agreed with the government’s positions or not, they wholeheartedly fought for the prosperity of the country,” Miller said. “Likewise, I will devote myself to the advancement of my country no matter who is in office.”
“This Memorial Day strikes deeper. … Ohio just welcomed home three fallen members of the Ohio Air National Guard,” said Commander Haraz Ghanbari during his keynote speech. “Young men, full of life. They answered our nation’s call to service, and they did so willingly.”
“As I look around here today, I see members of all generations, but I want to take a moment to address those from the Vietnam War,” Ghanbari continued. “Thank you for your service, and welcome home. You are the generation that promised that another generation would never endure the things that you endured when you came home.”
“When you get home today … look up the name Ora H. Sharninghouse – a young man who gave his life in WWII. Whose family never stopped searching for their loved one. We brought home Petty Officer Sharninghouse in 2018. Buried in a small cemetery in southern Wood County. Today is a day that we remember Petty Officer Sharninghouse, Captain Koval, Captain Angst, and Master Sergeant Simmons.”
Van Vorhis then sang “America, the Beautiful,” and Harvey said the benediction. Members of the 14th Ohio Volunteer Infantry provided a 21-gun salute, and a member of the BGHS Band played “Taps” to conclude the ceremony.
