Wheaton pays tribute to Medal of Honor recipient
They talk of camaraderie. They talk of brotherhood. They talk of the ultimate sacrifice.
But only a veteran can fully understand what those terms and ideas mean to other veterans, say some of the people at the forefront of Wheaton’s Memorial Day parade on Monday.
“I don’t know of any other organization that can be as close-knit or tight or honest with each other than fellow veterans,” said Steve Fixler, a 25-year retired Army veteran who serves as commander of Wheaton-Carol Stream American Legion Post 76.
“What you go through together is unheard of.”
As the day of reverence for fallen soldiers approaches, Fixler said it will carry special meaning in Wheaton because of the recent honor awarded posthumously to the family of Staff Sgt. Robert Miller, the Wheaton native killed in combat Jan. 25, 2008, in Afghanistan. Miller was awarded the Medal of Honor in October.
“For Memorial Day, you remember and honor everyone, no matter what,” Fixler said. “But when you have a Medal of Honor winner who went above and beyond the call of duty ... it’s an incredible thing to do and be recognized for.”
The parade steps off at 10 a.m. Monday from Memorial Park at the corner of Hale and Wesley streets. It travels west down Wesley Street to West Street, and then south past Roosevelt Road to Wheaton Cemetery.
Fixler will lead an 11 a.m. ceremony at the cemetery that will include several speakers, including U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam.
A portion of the ceremony will honor Miller, the Wheaton North High School graduate who pushed forward firing his weapon and tossing grenades after already having been shot twice on the battlefield.
“I don’t know if you can put it into words,” Fixler said. “Being a veteran, being with fellow veterans, there is nothing more powerful than the power of being in the brotherhood of veterans.”
City Councilman Tom Mouhelis is also part of that brotherhood. Mouhelis served in the Air Force for 30 years and frequently recognizes soldiers in the Middle East during city council meetings. He walks in the parade every year and says he is proud of the city’s track record of honoring veterans.
Mouhelis agreed that talking about the bond formed between fellow soldiers is difficult to express to people who have not experienced it.
“Anyone who wears that uniform has that camaraderie, that’s the bottom line,” Mouhelis said. “I don’t know too many others who have that kind of bond. We took an oath of enlisting. We made the commitment to serve and try to serve with honor.”
And Fixler said the connection extends beyond just those who serve during the same conflicts.
“Veterans from World War II feel a solid bond with veterans nowadays,” said Fixler, who retired in 2004.
“I have met veterans in the past that cannot talk about things to civilians, but they can talk about them to other veterans no matter how old. It extends to multiple generations.”
If You Go
If you go
What: Wheatons Memorial Day parade
When: 10 a.m. May 30
Where: Starts at corner of Hale and Wesley streets
Who: Wheaton-Carol Stream American Legion Post 76
Info: americanlegionpost76.org