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I recently joined KAVV soon after relocating to Kenosha from Evanston, IL. I was made aware of this Honor Guard through an ad in the VFW newsletter and applied immediately after moving in April 2025. I was interested due to the fact that I had served in an Honor Guard unit while on active duty in the US Army at Ft. Monmouth, NJ in 1970-71, before my deployment to Southeast Asia in 1971. I subsequently served in the 1St Signal Brigade in Vietnam and Thailand.

In addition to being a part of this group which carries the esteem of many of the veterans that I have met since moving, firing the final salute at funerals is rich in the honor that is eternal in those who have served. I noticed that the meaning of this activity carries a lot of meaning to the families of those who have passed.

At one of the funerals, I noticed a young boy around 10 years old standing close to his dad who was holding the folded flag given to the next of kin.  As we passed through the group of mourners, I handed my spent shell casings to the young man, he said “For me?”, I looked at the dad and he nodded yes, that it was ok to give them to the lad. He thanked me and I went on my way.

This incident, which only took a few seconds, stayed with me. It was a reminder that I had joined a group of dedicated veterans many of whom have been doing this duty for many years and I was proud and humbled at the same time. Providing solace by honoring the fallen is a rich tradition that carries meaning for us and for the families that we serve.

It is my hope that this young man will hold the shell casings as a way to honor the memory of his grandfather who served the nation with honor.

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The American Legion Paul Herrick Post 21 conducted its 70th annual memorial ceremony at Green Ridge Cemetery. Though the KAVV hasn’t participated for all seven decades, the organization has proudly supported Post 21’s ceremony for many years. Honor Guard Captain Tim Green solemnly lowered the cemetery flag to half-staff while the Honor Guard presented the colors. The ceremony concluded with a three-volley salute, followed by the haunting notes of Taps echoing across the grounds.

Memorial Day serves as a solemn reminder of the ultimate sacrifice made by countless service members who gave their lives defending our nation’s freedoms. Tim Green and Thomas J. Visintainer Sr. read the names of the far too many Kenosha and Wisconsin veterans who gave all, as well as the POW/MIA’s still unaccounted for.

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Tim is an Army Vietnam Veteran, He’s only been around a couple of weeks, so I don’t have the scoop yet, but the next picture of him will be in an Honor Guard uniform! That may be the next post because he was with us at our Memorial Day Ceremony. Glad to have you aboard Tim!

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Lou passed away on Monday July 22, 2024. You can read more here: Proko Funeral Home.

  • Long time member of the KAVV Honor Guard, Lou Polovick, receiving his Hometown Hero Award.

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Neil was a founding member of the KAVV and a Driver in Parades for many years. He moved to Antioch some years ago where he owned and operated Antioch Veterans Cab company. He passed away on December 14, 2022 and is interned at Southern Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Union Grove. He is remembered fondly.

His obituary is here https://www.strangfh.com/obituary/neal-ostergaard. His family would appreciate you signing his guestbook is here: http://www.strangfh.com/.

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Another one of Post 21’s ancient coolers gave up the ghost this past month. Rich Bowker and Tim Green presented the Posts House/Bar committee with $1000 towards a replacement. If you haven’t heard, the KAVV monthly meetings are now held in the American Legion, Post 21’s Hall. If you attend a meeting and have a cold one, pat yourself on the back, it’s cold because of your dedication to the veterans of Kenosha.

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If you haven’t been to Joe’s website recently, you’re missing some great articles including a current article entitled “Learning Beyond the Battlefield” by guest writer Rhonda Underhill.  Rhonda is a health care advocate for senior citizens, veterans and persons with disabilities and who has, along with her husband Pete, created a website dedicated to the health and well being of seniors.

Both the article and the website are well worth a look. 

Both the article and the website are well worth a look. 

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The KAVV’s newest full member, John Argust, sadly will not be at the Christmas party this year, but he has a couple of really good reasons!

Here are some pictures of John’s nephew Warrant Officer Jonathon Forsberg who just graduated flight school at Fort Novosel, AL. He is pictured with his parents, and John.

John stated that “They had a Blackhawk for family day. They let use take all the photos, sit in it and ask all the questions we could come up with. It was pretty cool!”

John also got to sit in the cockpit, but in my opinion, he made it look like one of those rides outside a grocery store.

John on a Blackhawk ride in front of Festival Foods

After this visit they are heading further south to see John’s Son! Have a great trip Karen & John!

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Did you know we have (at least) two US Navy Hospital Corpsman and one Army Medic on the Honor Guard. Jim Rossman was an Army Medic, and Rich Willoughby and Brad Cramlet were Navy Corpsman. Both of these ratings are among the most highly decorated ratings in the military.

That seems to be more than our share of medical folks. It got me interested and I found some good reading about corpsman / medics…

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On the KAVV made a Generous donation of $500 worth of new toys to the Marine Corps Toy’s for Tots Program. Rose Bowker and Sue Green were kind enough to do the shopping. Mission BBQ organized this group of donations and hosted the event. Of course they included a delicious meal! Here are some pictures of the event that I got from facebook.

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The KAVV now regularly meets at the Kenosha Heroes Cafe located in the Festival Foods Mezzanine on Fridays. Stop on by for the coffee and cakes, and stay for the camaraderie!

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We visited the Annual Gods Kitchen Thanksgiving Dinner to present them with our annual donation to this important charity. Here’s some pictures…

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Here are some pic of our annual service at Library Park. It was a beautiful day this year. 100 Year old Birthday Boy, George Peter, was our guest.