On a sunny Thursday afternoon, 450 politicians, civilians, military men and women, and their families attended a ceremony to dedicate the first state veterans cemetery in western Montana.
It was the culmination of a seven-year journey that required lots of help and lots of heart.
The decorated war hero began forcefully advocating for a veterans cemetery in Missoula a decade ago, but his bullish approach proved unsuccessful, especially with Montana's congressional delegation. Though Koski died in 2002 at the age of 89, the dream of a cemetery lived.
“If it doesn't happen in my lifetime, I've requested that my son keep my ashes in an urn and bury them ... when this takes place,” Koski told the Missoulian in 1998, way before the ball even began rolling on the project.
Now, his wish will be granted. Koski, a World War II veteran, will be the first honorary burial in the new 24-acre cemetery adjacent to Big Sky High School.
“He would've died crawling on his belly to be here today,” said Koski's son, Steve Jr., who attended Thursday's dedication. “He would have thought it was magnificent.”
Many veterans came to the ceremony wearing their military dress uniforms. Organizers pulled out all the stops with a flyover by a Black Hawk helicopter, a 21-gun rifle salute, a tribal prayer, “Amazing Grace” performed by the Celtic Dragon Pipe Band and a trumpeter who played taps.
Eleven dignitaries and military officials spoke, including Lt. Gov. John Bohlinger, Mayor John Engen, County Commissioner Larry Anderson and U.S. Undersecretary for Memorial Affairs William Tuerk, who heads the agency that oversees all national cemeteries. All three of Montana's congressional delegates sent representatives to read prepared statements.
Everything was running smoothly, except for a slight breeze that would intermittently knock over several of a dozen flags behind the lectern.
Finally, silently, a half-dozen University of Montana ROTC cadets and a handful of veterans from the audience took their places behind each flag, holding them for the remainder of the ceremony.
“They identified a problem and stepped up to solve the problem,” said Brig. Gen. John Walsh, commending the soldiers and veterans at the front of the stage. “They saw a problem and fixed it. The same goes for the people in Missoula” who made the cemetery a reality.
Most specifically is 79-year-old Charlie Crookshanks, who received multiple standing ovations through the course of the ceremony for his selfless dedication to the project. Crookshanks was chairman of the Western Montana State Veterans Cemetery Committee.
“If your loved ones are entrusted here, we guarantee they will never be forgotten,” said Don Kettner, chairman of the Montana Board of Veterans Affairs.
The cemetery illustrates a commitment to taking care of veterans today, and those of tomorrow.
Veterans sacrifice for their country, and consequently, so do their families, said Joe Foster, administrator of the state Veterans Affairs Division. Providing a veterans cemetery for their loved ones closer to their homes is a way to give back to the families who have already given so much, he said.
Of the 109,000 veterans in Montana, 36,000 live in western Montana.
Though it was a day of celebration, it was also one of mourning and remembrance, as many recognized Patriot Day, the observance of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
There are two other state veterans cemeteries in Montana. The one in Miles City was dedicated in 2002 and the one in Helena, located at Fort Harrison, was dedicated in 1989.
Only two other states west of the Mississippi, Hawaii and Missouri, have more state veterans cemeteries than Montana. That's because many states have a national cemetery, Foster said.
Gaining state and federal approval for this cemetery, locating a site, and scraping up the millions of dollars necessary to complete and maintain it proved difficult at times. Montana's congressional delegation had to break through bureaucratic barriers on occasion to keep the project moving forward.
The day was especially sweet for Bill Roehl, who, for the first time, eyed the place where he will eventually be laid to rest.
Roehl, who retired as a colonel from active duty in the Army after 29 years, could be buried at the Fort Missoula Post Cemetery less than a mile away, but he wanted to be buried among friends.
“A lot of my friends will be buried here,” said Roehl, who celebrated his 87th birthday Thursday. “It's an ideal location.”
The cemetery is scheduled to open for full operations by Oct. 6. Landscaping is still under way. Vehicles parked Thursday in a dirt lot that will eventually be home to gravesites.
Unlike the other two veterans cemeteries in the state, Missoula's has two unique characteristics. One is a memorial park that is reserved for special occasions. The other is that western Montana's veterans service offices will be located on site. These offices help people apply for veterans benefits, make disability claims, and help families with veterans' burial benefits.
The $100,000 needed to operate a state veterans cemetery comes from a $10 fee on veteran license plates. Though the federal government pays to build a state veterans cemetery, it's up to the state to maintain it.
The $10 fee generates enough money to support a third cemetery, Foster said, but there won't be excess funds to put toward emergency maintenance in the future. No state general fund money goes to the maintenance of these three cemeteries.
Reporter Chelsi Moy can be reached at 523-5260 or at chelsi.moy@missoulian.com.
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c.joseph campagna wrote on Sep 12, 2008 8:38 AM:
" Hi, I wish to be bury at the vet cemetery in Missoula.I had to move out of state for health reasons.Please give me info on who to contact when the time comes. thank you cjc "
Bruce Rumer wrote on Sep 12, 2008 9:35 AM:
" Chelsi,
I am a native Missoulian. My father, D. Wayne Rumer moved to Missola after his service in the United States Army in Germany during WWII. He bacame a Missoula City Policeman in 1947 and retired in 1967. He then took a position offered by [then] sheriff John Murphy as a Deputy Sheriff. He resigned in 1975 due to health concerns. He and my mother moved to California to be close to his children.
Dad passed away quietly in 1981 of ALS and his ashes were spread in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, CA.
I would like to learn more about the new Veteran's Cemetery in Missoula...and a possible memorial to Dad.
Thank you for any information you can pass along to me.
Bruce Rumer
Cathlamet, WA "
I am a native Missoulian. My father, D. Wayne Rumer moved to Missola after his service in the United States Army in Germany during WWII. He bacame a Missoula City Policeman in 1947 and retired in 1967. He then took a position offered by [then] sheriff John Murphy as a Deputy Sheriff. He resigned in 1975 due to health concerns. He and my mother moved to California to be close to his children.
Dad passed away quietly in 1981 of ALS and his ashes were spread in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, CA.
I would like to learn more about the new Veteran's Cemetery in Missoula...and a possible memorial to Dad.
Thank you for any information you can pass along to me.
Bruce Rumer
Cathlamet, WA "
Joe Foster wrote on Sep 12, 2008 11:50 AM:
" Mr. Campagna and all interested veterans: All honorably discharged U.S. military veterans, regardless of state residence, can be interred in the Western Montana State Veterans Cemetery. Call 406-324-3740 to have any questions answered. Joe Foster, Administrator - Montana Veterans Affairs Division "
Jeanne E. Lester wrote on Sep 12, 2008 8:37 AM:
Thanks to everyone who worked on this project,in general, and to Charlie Crookshanks in particular.
Jeanne E. Lester "