WWI plays central role in Veterans Day remembrance in Appleton

November 13, 2017  In The News  Appleton Post Crescent

American Legion Scarlet guard leads procession over the Memorial Bridge on route to the Appleton Courthouse (Photo: Danny Damiani/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin)

World War I and its lessons were a central theme for Veterans Day speakers Saturday in the 100th year since the U.S. entered The Great War.

The wintry morning began with a rededication and commemoration of the "Spirit of the American Doughboy" statue, which honors Outagamie County soldiers who served in World War I. In July, the statue had been taken to a foundry in Iowa to be recast. On Monday it took its place again on South Memorial Drive.

"Over the 83 years since it was first dedicated, that statue standing at the entrance to Memorial Drive has come to symbolize not only the doughboy of World War I but of all veterans," said Appleton Mayor Tim Hanna, one of the speakers at Saturday's dedication. "During these intervening years, this city and this county have continued to send its brave sons and daughters into battle — World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm, Afghanistan and Iraq. And as the statue itself has endured heat, cold, wind, rain, sleet and snow, so have our veterans endured extreme conditions and hardships in their quest to fulfill their duty." 

Alex Schultz, a Desert Storm veteran and president of the nonprofit arts advocacy group Sculpture Valley, which helped the city create a memorial restoration program, urged attendees to reflect on the magnitude of the fatalities, injuries and other sacrifices in World War I.

The day originally known as Armistice Day was meant for quiet reflection to remember those lost in the conflict but also "to commit to never again revisiting such a horror upon the earth and upon each other," he said. "But then, we tend to forget our history lessons."

A veteran looks on while holding an American flag while Alex Schultz, Sculpture Valley president, speaks during the rededication and commemoration of "The Spirit of the American Doughboy" statue Saturday in Appleton. (Photo: Danny Damiani/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin)

This history reminds that the "ugly threat of war" is forever on the horizon and it should not be taken lightly, as our leaders seem to do, he said. 

A new plaque listing all 116 Outagamie County doughboys who died in WWI was also unveiled at the ceremony. 

Nearby resident John Gilbert, a Vietnam-era Army veteran, said he was pleased with the turnout and praised the new plaque.

"This is absolutely fantastic, and the plaque, my God, is that beautiful," he said after the ceremony, which was followed by a march to the Outagamie County Administration Building. There, the annual Veterans Day ceremony was held.Many times, veterans' sacrifices are more than serving in combat, said retired Army officer Jim Strong of Appleton as he stood outside the Administration Building before the second ceremony. A broad spectrum of the veteran community was represented there on Saturday, he said.

That was a theme touched on by U.S. Rep. Mike Gallagher, a Marine veteran.

Veterans make up a small percentage of the population but "you look around our community on every single day and you're reminded that our veterans are all around us," he told the gathering inside the Administration Building, the Veterans Wall of Honor behind him. 

Wisconsin was in many ways a reluctant participant in WWI, Gallagher said, but many politicians opposed to the war still made sure that "once we were in it, we would fight to win." The entire state stepped up, he said. 

And from the war came lessons, he told the crowd, one being an enduring lie that we can end all war. 

U.S. Rep. Mike Gallagher speaks Saturday at a Veterans Day ceremony at the Outagamie County Courthouse in Appleton. (Photo: Danny Damiani/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin)

"As someone pointed out a long time ago, war cannot be avoided, it can only be postponed to the other's advantage," he said. "Here in the Midwest we might simply say, problems don't age well. That's as true in our personal lives as it is when dealing with the great problems of international politics, which leads to an enduring truth that today should remind us of — in a world that will always be dangerous and filled with bad actors who want to do us harm, the best chance we have of avoiding war is to prepare for it." 

It's better to be vigilant, shape events to our advantage and be "forward-engaged" and strong, he said.

The source of the country's strength comes from the character and spirit of the people who fight the wars, Gallagher told the group. And they're a reflection of the communities they come from.