NATION NEVER FORGETS

County honors sacrifices made by men and women in uniform at Veterans Day service

Chris Rosenblum

- crosenbl@centredaily.com

BELLEFONTE — Like an ancient god, Joe DeHaas flung thunderbolts across the landscape.

CDT/Nabil K. Mark

Vietnam Army Veteran Terry Donahey, of Pleasant Gap, listens to the speaker during the Veterans Day ceremony held at the Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte, November 11, 2009. CDT/Nabil K. Mark

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DeHaas, of Bellefonte, helped direct fire for the 82nd Field Artillery Battalion during the Korean War, usually from mountain positions. The barrages supported fellow 1st Cavalry Division soldiers and other infantry.

On Wednesday, DeHaas proudly wore a baseball cap identifying himself as a Korean War vet while standing in front of the Centre County Courthouse for the annual community Veterans Day ceremony.

“We went. We did it for our country and never gave it another thought,” DeHaas said. “I’d do it again.”

He was one of several veterans throughout the crowd gathered to honor those who have served in the military. Others from the Bellefonte Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1600 and the Nittany Leathernecks formed color guards, joined by members of the American Legion posts in Bellefonte and Milesburg.

Capt. Paolo Sica, a State College native and Penn State graduate, also came in uniform — camouflage and a black beret — to give the keynote speech. Sica commanded the National Guard soldiers of Company C, based in Bellefonte and Tyrone, who served in Iraq this year with the 2nd Battalion, 112th Regiment, 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team.

Courthouse flags at half-mast fluttered as Sica thanked the town for its send-off parade last year and warm welcoming reception this fall. He then recalled the company’s arduous training before its deployment, and a nine-month tour spent north of Baghdad patrolling with native police and soldiers, adapting to local leaders and customs, and rebuilding communities.

All of the soldiers, he said, came home “changed, most for the better.”

“They’re warriors, not victims,” Sica said. “They love their county. They love their country.”

Ben Novak’s patriotism while serving in the Army led him to volunteer for a Vietnam combat tour in 1968.

Novak, an attorney and retired Penn State trustee, became a decorated infantry captain. Speaking at a campus Veterans Day ceremony in front of Old Main, he said many veterans of his turbulent era — including himself — suffered insults and abuse.

“Because I was a veteran, there were those who would not talk to me, or shake my hand,” he said.

Those slights, a far cry from the respect shown during the Veterans Days of his youth, still sting. But he appreciated Wednesday’s tribute.

“That was then, and this is now,” he said. “I’m so happy those days are gone.”

Bellefonte’s ceremony, which included a memorial wreath, rifle salute and echoing taps, left veterans pleased.

DeHaas got “goose-bumps” from a medley of service anthems played by the Bellefonte Area High School band. Stan Adams, a Navy veteran and former director of the county’s Veterans Affairs office, liked the turnout — easily about 100 people and the largest local Veterans Day crowd he has seen in recent years.

Two ongoing wars, and the recent Fort Hood shootings, may have helped more people remember the day, he said.

“They realize the importance of it,” Adams said. “I’m glad it’s increasing, because for a few years, we worried that attendance would drop to nothing.”

Ben Proffitt, of Bellefonte, flew jet fighters in Korea and Vietnam. For him, Veterans Day comes down to celebrating one common thread among his brothers and sisters in arms.

“The duty they performed,” he said. “They gave everything up for our country.”