Morris honors veterans with Veterans Day ceremony at Grundy County Courthouse

Veterans and their families gathered Monday morning at the Grundy County Courthouse to celebrate and honor those who have served, reflecting on what the sacrifices it takes to serve and what it’s like to return home.

Gerald Zeborowski, Commander of the John Martin Steele VFW Post, said military members start sacrificing when they raise their hands to take their oaths.

“What our we sacrificing?” Zeborowski asked. “Our way of life, a new change. We could no longer sleep till when we wanted to. We ate what the military served us. We had to wear the clothes they provided. We missed Mom’s home cooking. You can’t lounge around, do whatever you want. Instead, we traded that for bugles at 5:30 a.m.”

Zeborowski said veterans transform into the military way of life, hearing people yell at them, before traveling to far away places to live among the natives in places that might not have modern amenities like plumbing, electricity, familiar food.

He said he had veteran students during his time as a college professor, and often times they were more successful because of their discipline.

“They show up and do what they have to do, just like in the military,” Zeborowski said. “They were very sucessful, but there are many that struggle. They come home with missing limbs, legs, arms or both, and combat wounds, and who is there to take care of them besides the VA?”

Zeborowski said veterans groups like the American Legion, VFW and Disabled American Veterans help veterans. Despite that, there are many, many homeless veterans and many fighting a silent battle with their PTSD.

Steve Huetteman, the Senior Vice Commander of the Disabled American Veterans, said he discovers people he’s known for years that don’t talk much about their service. For him, it breaks the mold of what a stereotypical veteran looks like. Veterans are people of all shapes and sizes.

“Some veterans choose to go about their lives and never talk about their time in the service for any number of reasons,” Huetteman. “I’ve known a man at my church who was a marine in Vietnam. I’ve been friends with this guy for years and never knew about his service. It’s not that he didn’t like talking about his time at war. He’d just never bring it up.”

Huetteman said his friend is a humble man who’d rather hear about others than himself.

The ceremony ended with a laying of wreaths by Linda Kirkman of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Becky West with the American Legion Auxiliary, and Jerry Terando and Jeannie Terando, the parents of fallen soldier Josh Terando, who passed away in 2006.