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the northbrook tower | November 15, 2018 | 3
Ceremony commemorates Armistice Day
Sarah Haider
Freelance Reporter
Community members
from across Northbrook
gathered together to remember
those who served
on Sunday, Nov. 11, at
American Legion Post
791’s Veterans Day Ceremony
at Northbrook Junior
High School.
The ceremony occurred
on “the eleventh hour of
the eleventh day of the
eleventh month” in honor
of the 100th anniversary
of the signing of the Armistice,
the peace agreement
that brought cessation of
hostilities on the Western
Front in World War I.
Members of the George
W. Benjamin Post 791 performed
a Roll Call of Honor,
reading out the names
of Northbrook-area WWI
veterans, like George W.
Benjamin, and chiming a
bell in each person’s honor.
Post 791 Cmdr. Tom
Mahoney also enlisted the
bells of several churches
across Northbrook, when
local congregations sounded
their bells at 11 a.m. to
mark the end of the fighting.
“Freedom isn’t free and
there is a price to be paid,”
Mahoney said. “We honor
the men and women that
have done this through the
generations. … We are trying
to focus on the participation
of previous generations
that have given us the
country we have today.”
Mahoney, who served
in the U.S. Army military
police, thanked his fellow
veterans that attended the
service, noting several of
the legion’s current members
are combat veterans,
who served in Vietnam,
Korea and Kuwait.
“Today we live in a
Band Director Greg Scapillato leads the Northbrook
Junior High wind ensemble at the Veterans Day ceremony.
country that thanks to your
service is free,” Mahoney
said. “Today we thank you
for your actions and sacrifices
that guarantee our
rights and freedoms. For
which we as Americans
are the envy of the world.
Because of your actions we
enjoy a way of life that provides
the economic engine
and bread basket for much
of the world. Because of
your actions, we have the
freedom to work, to play, to
invent, to prosper.”
At the event a WWI reenactor
dressed in an authentic
uniform retold the
WWI experiences of the
grandfather to current legion
member Al Avery.
The Sons of American
Legion Squadron 791 performed
a rifle salute, while
two Glenbrook North High
School students played taps
in memory of those who
lost their lives in service.
Seventh- and eighth-graders
from the Northbrook
Junior High wind ensemble
provided patriotic music
for the event, led by Director
Greg Scapillato.
“This is our way of
showing gratitude for the
sacrifices they made,”
Scapillato said. “From the
time away from home,
from the birthdays and
family events they missed
as a result of their service.
It is just the smallest way
we can say thank you by
providing a service back to
them as a way of recognizing
them for their service.”
The wind ensemble
played four songs: “The
Star-Spangled Banner,”
“America the Beautiful,”
“Over There” and “Armed
Forces on Parade.” For
Scapillato, who has several
veterans in his family,
leading “Armed Forces on
Parade” was his favorite
part of the event. During
the performance, members
of the five branches
of the military were encouraged
to stand up and
be recognized while their
service song was played.
“There is something so
moving about that,” Scapillato
said. “It’s hard to
put into words because it’s
tied to the music and their
shared experiences in that
we can have them stand up
and be recognized by their
community. It’s wonderful.”
Starting preparation for
the event at the beginning
of the year, students in
the wind ensemble have
learned the historical significance
behind the songs,
as well as the music. Tenor
saxophone player Andrew
Frese, along with his
eighth-grade class, also
learned a unit on WWI in
Post Commander Tom Mahoney rings a bell in honor of Northbrook World War I
veterans on Sunday, Nov. 11 at NBJH. Photos by Sarah Haider/22nd Century Media
the classroom. For Frese,
having the opportunity to
play for Northbrook’s veterans
was a small way to
show his appreciation for
the service of veterans.
“They risked their lives
for us so we should give
something back,” Frese
said. “It’s the least we
could do to give an hour of
our time to play for them.
They were willing to risk
their lives for our country
and the people who live
in it and they gave us our
rights and all that America
stands for.”