At Des Plaines ceremony, Crystal Lake veteran recalls guarding Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
In the history of the nation's military, fewer than 700 veterans have had the honor of guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Called sentinels, they are distinguished with a badge that's the second least-awarded qualification badge in the military, next to the astronaut's badge.
George Haupt, of Crystal Lake, is one of the fortunate few to have that distinction, a veteran who spent most of his military service honoring the fallen Unknown at Arlington National Cemetery.
“I can tell you there were many very moving times,” Haupt told a crowd at a Des Plaines Veterans Day ceremony at Prairie Lakes Theater. “To many people the Unknown symbolized somebody that they knew — maybe a loved one — somebody that had not come back from the war. And that was their way of closure.
“You could see people praying. People would walk by me when I was on duty and say, ‘Thank you.'”
Haupt's recollection was one of several tributes given at Veterans Day ceremonies held Wednesday throughout the suburbs.
Haupt, 82, a retired Army corporal, guarded the tomb from December 1954 to September 1955. At the time, guards worked one day on, then two days off.
In the daytime, Haupt paced back and forth an hour at a time before it was time for the changing of the guard. At night, he worked two hours straight before a change.
“You have to learn how not to be distracted because when you are a guard, believe it or not, there are people out there who will do stupid things to try to distract you,” he said. “It was a challenging job to maintain the standard that was constantly required.”
It's so challenging, he said, that only one out of 10 who enter training to become a guard actually finish it.
Haupt recalls spending nights learning how to “walk the mat” — 21 seconds one way, then 21 seconds back.
“You learn how to count 21 seconds for one hour without missing a second.”
Haupt is immediate past president of the Society of the Honor Guard, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, a national organization composed of other former guards.