'God bless our veterans'

JOLIET -- As "Amazing Grace" began, a man whispered into his cell phone.

"Listen, listen," he said, pointing it toward the bag pipers of the Joliet Fire Department Honor Guard.

Dr. Paul Stoxen was able to attend the Veterans Day ceremony Thursday in front of the Will County Courthouse, but he was alone. Betty Stoxen, his wife, was volunteering at Silver Cross Hospital. The 85-year-old retired chiropractor from Lockport wanted to include her, so he made the call.

Well, he might have had the tiniest of ulterior motives.

"I wanted to make sure she knew I really was down here," Stoxen said, chuckling.

He was part of the crowd gathered in the cold sunshine and near the eternal flame burning outside the court building. Everyone was there for the same reason: to remember the nation's veterans while enjoying the music of the Joliet American Legion Band and singer Elaine Swearingen. There were many local politicians in the group, including Will County Executive Larry Walsh.

"God bless our veterans, and God bless the U.S. of A.," he said, and the crowd cheered.

Near the end, Sean Baumgartner, assistant director of the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, took the microphone. He was the featured speaker. "Do you enjoy your peace? Do you enjoy your freedom?" he asked. "If you live in this country and are an American citizen, you do." Without the nation's veterans, those pleasures wouldn't be possible, Baumgartner said.

As the band began a salute to each branch of the armed forces, Glenn Ellena, 79, of Plainfield Township, joined them. "The caissons go rolling along," he sang, perfectly in tune. Ellena, 79, served in the Korean War.

Not far away was Larry Heck, 62, of Joliet. Retired from the Navy, he served during the Vietnam era. "I come down here every year," Heck said. "I feel like I represent the people I was in the service with. I'll never forget those days."

As the ceremony ended, Joliet City Council Member Jan Quillman stopped to talk to several friends. But she paused only briefly -- she had a list of places to visit Thursday, including a cemetery and several American Legion posts.

"We can't forget our veterans," Quillman said. "Without them, we wouldn't have what we have today. We're indebted to all our servicemen."