Veterans remember battles, comrades

A small table set for one was used to symbolize missing comrades.
By SEAN BARRON
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
YOUNGSTOWN -- Michael Cossack Sr. will likely never forget the sound of the explosion near a set of barracks at Wheeler Field that he heard from the inside of a hangar at Pearl Harbor.
"I was lucky to get out alive," said Cossack, 86, of Struthers, adding that he was struck by shrapnel during the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor and "ran on adrenaline" as others with severe injuries ran for their lives.
Cossack, who was a sergeant in the Army Air Corps during World War II, also remembers the acrid black smoke billowing in the air after numerous ships had been bombed.
For Frank Sepesy of Poland, time has done little to dim memories of March 19, 1945. On that day, Sepesy, a Navy cook, was aboard the USS Franklin aircraft carrier off the coast of Japan when a bomb struck, killing 832 of his comrades.
"I'm glad to be here to talk about it. Time heals, but you never forget," said the 82-year-old Sepesy, who drives a bus part time for the Struthers school district and sings in a chorus.
Participation
It's also unlikely that Cossack and Sepesy, who served in WWII and the Korean War, will forget being asked to sing the national anthem and carry a wreath as part of Saturday's Veterans Day program put on by the United Veterans Council. Both men were among about 100 veterans, family members and others who came to the Mahoning County Courthouse rotunda to take part in the program and march to honor those who served their country.
The hourlong event also featured a remembrance for prisoners of war and those missing in action as well as a Laying of the Wreath at Man on the Monument on Youngstown's Central Square.
Health care
Delivering the keynote presentation was John Twohig, director of the Mahoning County Veterans Service Commission and commander of UVC. Twohig told his audience that he wants health-care benefits for veterans through the Veterans Administration to be mandatory instead of discretionary. Congress has made changes regarding what the VA can provide, but too often the funding is inadequate, Twohig contended.
The VA provides benefits to many veterans for the first two years. But they can be cut off after that if veterans still have residual effects of a disease or illness the agency deems not directly related to their service, Twohig noted. An example is post traumatic stress syndrome, the symptoms of which can last for years.
Congress needs to be more consistent when it comes to funding the VA, he added. Twohig urged veterans to write or call their elected representatives and "hold their feet to the fire."
Preceding Twohig's speech was a tribute to POWs and MIAs given by Ray Ornelas, senior vice commander of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post No. 3538.
Symbols
Ornelas referred to a nearby small table set for one, used to symbolize missing comrades. Other symbols on the table included a white tablecloth to represent purity of motives in serving; a red rose to remind people of POWs' families and friends; a lemon to recall their bitter fate; and a flag to point out that some may never return.
After the presentations, the audience heard a salute to fallen comrades by the Tri-State Marine Corps League. Taps was played by Joe Pavlov and music was provided by The Rayen School band, Boy Scout Troop 33 and the Time Keeper Drum & amp; Flag Line.