Fort Wayne, IN - Son thanks local vets for dad’s funeral

OFF THE WIRE
LYNN HOUSER
 journalgazette.net
Dad would have been so pleased.
On March 5, my father, Ray Houser, was given a proper military funeral in Fort Wayne.
Although Fort Wayne was his lifelong home, Dad’s heart was always on the high seas. He served 35 years in the Navy, including World War II, where he sailed on a minesweeper. To the very end of his 93-year run on this Earth, his military career was the thing he was most proud of – outside of family.
He was never prouder of me than when I was in the Navy from 1972 to ’76. Now he has a grandson, Raymond, named after him, who has risen to the rank of master chief petty officer. Dad ascended to the highest rank possible for an enlisted man, chief warrant officer.
I’m sure Dad was beaming from above when Chief Raymond DeMarco showed up in full dress blues for the funeral Saturday. I also dressed for the occasion with a navy blue suit and a star-spangled red, white and blue tie.
Dad had expressed a strong desire for a military funeral, including a three-volley salute, but with the country still deeply involved in war, there is a shortage of available military personnel for such occasions.
However, friends of the family made phone call after phone call until arriving at a viable alternative, the American Legion. Specifically, American Legion Post 241 in Waynedale. Members from posts around the Fort Wayne area volunteered to accord Dad full military honors. Also stepping up to the plate were the Patriot Guard Riders, the motorcycle “gang” that goes all over the country to see that veterans are not forgotten.
The Patriot Guard planted American flags at the entrance to the funeral home, the church and the cemetery. A group of them stood at attention during the entire Mass said prior to Dad’s burial.
Greeting us at the cemetery were two representatives of the local Navy Reserve unit. They saw to the playing of taps and the proper folding of the flag that had draped the casket. When they had finished folding the flag, the senior officer inspected it for military precision, and then approached. He dropped to one knee and said, “On behalf of a grateful nation …”
As the sole surviving son, I was the rightful recipient. And also as a veteran myself, I was allowed to return salute. I must admit now that I often casually saluted when I was on active duty, but this was one time I wanted to get it right. I stood at attention, cocked my right hand crisply against my brow, and then slowly lowered the hand in synch with the Navy representative.
Unbeknownst to me, other members in the congregation behind me were doing the same thing.
I was so moved when I turned around that I could barely choke out a final request, the singing of “America the Beautiful.” Right on cue, everyone joined in, including the color guard.
Never in my life was I more proud to be an American, and it gave me a deeper appreciation of those who paid the ultimate price.
Ray Houser was no war hero, but he did devote his life to his country. The military funeral he received Saturday was all he ever wanted in return.
Anchors aweigh, my boys.