Names adorn the poles of flags to be raised for the Avenue of Flags at Olney Cemetery in Pendleton on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2020.

PENDLETON — Even in a pandemic year, local groups got together over the span of two days to ensure Pendleton honored its veterans on Veterans Day.

More than a dozen people braved the rain and hail on Tuesday, Nov. 10, as members of the Pendleton’s Veteran of Foreign Wars Let’er Buck Post No. 922 and Boy Scout Troop 700 worked to install the more than 120 flags that make up the Avenue of Flags at Olney Cemetery.

“These are all honorable veterans that the families donated their casket flags to fly here,” said Clifford Smith, a former Army medic who served in Vietnam in 1971 and 1972.

One by one, members of the VFW called out the name written on each flag as Smith and Tom Tangney checked the names against a list of flags belonging to veterans who were killed in action or prisoners of war. The flags belonging to those veterans were set aside and placed along the main drive into the cemetery.

“Those are the ones that we honor the most. The ones that sacrificed the most,” Smith said.

That sacrifice is one that Tangney understands deeply. The former Marine lost his brother on Nov. 3, 1952, while the pair was stationed in Korea together, a date that Tangney remembers to this day.

Tangney has been a member of the VFW since 1951 and has been participating in Avenue of Flags since its inception.

Tangney, a former VFW post commander, echoed the importance of the day and honoring veterans who have died and those who are currently serving.

“I tell my family it’s important to honor their veterans,” he said. “When the younger people see that they’re given something and it’s up to them to protect it. It plays a part in them coming up right.”

Tangney added that he was happy to have the Boy Scouts out helping and learning from the veterans, but said he hoped more younger veterans would join in in future years.

Since Memorial Day, the VFW has been working to replace the wooden poles on all of the flags with upgraded metal ones that are better suited for inclement weather. Following Memorial Day, many of the wooden flag poles swelled with water and some had to be broken off to get them out of the ground, leading to issues placing some this year.

Alexander Krokosz, 14, and Marley Blanchet, 12, were among the Boy Scouts out helping to clear space for flag poles and raise flags.

“It means that we’re helping the community the best way that we can,” Krokosz said.

Scoutmaster Karl Farber said he feels it is important for the Boy Scouts to take part in events like the Avenue of Flags as a way of connecting them to the veterans and teaching them to support the armed forces.

“This is what the Boy Scouts is about, it’s all about teaching leadership and teaching young men to be young men,” he said.

Farber added that many Boy Scouts go on to serve in the military and events like the Avenue of Flags help them to understand the sacrifices made by many, including former Scouts.

“A lot of scouts go into the military, so it’s just paying tribute to those that fought for our country,” he said.

Judith Burger, the commander of the Pendleton VFW Post, said she was pleasantly surprised with how well setting up the flags went despite the foul weather and several other minor issues.

“Considering we had a few hiccups, all in all it went pretty well,” she said.

Burger said the Avenue of Flags carries incredible importance every year, but she felt as though it offered additional meaning in the midst of a pandemic that has left many unable to hold events in honor of veterans.

“Every one of these flags represents a veteran and they’re all no longer with us,” she said. “This gives us a way to still represent their presence and their contributions.”

Pioneer ceremony

While Memorial Day is specifically designated as the day to remember those that died while serving in the military, Veterans Day can also evoke memories of the dead.

Speaking in front of a small audience assembled at the Pendleton Pioneer Chapel for the VFW Post 922’s annual Veterans Day ceremony, Zimmerman & Co. True Value co-owner Jimmy Naughton said he wasn’t a veteran himself but was related to several in his family.

Among those he shared with the crowd was the story of his grandfather, James P. Naughton, who died while fighting in World War II.

“Veterans are heroes,” he said. “They’re my heroes.”

VFW member John Cook’s opening remarks noted that many Veterans Day events throughout Umatilla County had been canceled or heavily modified after the governor “paused” many social activities to slow the spread of COVID-19.

“They missed us somehow, so we’re happy to be here,” he said.

It’s been a tough year for the VFW, not only because of the effects of the pandemic, but also due to more than a dozen deaths among their members.

Burger said at least 14 members have died this year, but it can be difficult to track because the organization isn’t able to connect with some inactive members.

One VFW member who stayed active until this year was Bob Michael, who was 95.

In an interview after the ceremony, Cook said Michael never failed to help out with a ceremony or a Cowboy Breakfast during Round-Up.

Cook recalled the time Michael helped out with a renovation project at the Milton-Freewater Elks Lodge, where a man in 60s complained that he was too old to do this kind of work. Cook remembered that Michael proceeded to outwork the man for the rest of the day.

“I don’t think Bob had an enemy,” Cook said.