Column: Veterans Day events in Aurora always moving, patriotic

My favorite city-sponsored event in Aurora has always been its Veterans Day activities and tributes. The celebration never fails to be a true patriotic experience for me.

The parades, guest speeches, rifle salutes and playing of taps have always been inspirational, and those traditions continued recently in downtown Aurora. Although the parade was held outdoors on the cold and blustery day, the speaking portions of the program were moved indoors to City Hall.

This year’s guest speaker was United States Air Force veteran and current Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps instructor Scott Hellinger. He is the lead instructor in the AFJROTC program at West High School in Aurora.

A recipient of many military awards and decorations, Hellinger spoke of our veterans’ willingness to always put service before self.

“Each of their stories is woven into the fabric of America,” he said. “They are stories of courage in the face of danger, compassion in times of hardship and an unwavering commitment to something greater than themselves.”

At the conclusion of his remarks, the rifle salute was given outside City Hall at the traditional 11 a.m., and taps was played by West Aurora student Asher Lesniak.

Veterans Day honors all veterans, living and deceased, but special mention is usually made of area veterans who have passed away in the last year.

Richard “Dick” Miller and Jenaro “Jerry” Cisneros, both from Aurora, passed away in 2025. Thinking of Mr. Cisneros and Mr. Miller, I realized that they had been the last living World War II veterans about whom I had written in this space, and also that they might be the last World War II veterans with whom I would ever visit.

That thought almost brought a tear to my eye. Our greatest generation has almost all passed away.

I have always tried to pay special tribute to World War II veterans while also honoring all of our heroes.

Through my conversations with their family members, I tried to tell the stories of Lloyd Gannegan, Ed Nelson and Robert Olson.

Through direct interviews with the men themselves, I had the privilege of listening to the amazing stories of Delmar Gerth, Harold Ray, Ron Olson, John Giartonia, Olaf Gjovik, Miller and Cisneros.

I could never pick a favorite veteran or a favorite story, but I think that the accounts of the war given to me by Miller and Cisneros were probably the most compelling.

Miller, who died this year at age 98, enlisted in the Navy at age 17, and served aboard the destroyer USS Drexler. When I visited with him in 2019, he spoke of surviving the Drexler disaster.

“I was a spotter for Japanese kamikaze planes,” he said. “We were hit twice, and the second one blew our ship to pieces. It started to roll over, and was said to have gone under in 49 seconds.

“I was in the water, and we couldn’t swallow because of all the oil and diesel fuel. Many sailors died from swallowing it. I had a few burns, but didn’t ever put in for any medals. I couldn’t bring myself to take anything after all those guys were lost.

“When you’ve seen a sailor hanging dead over a gun turret, it’s hard for me to comprehend that anybody wouldn’t be patriotic.”

Cisneros, who just passed away in October at age 99, told me his story in 2019 of being drafted before even becoming a United States citizen. It has even more meaning to me now amid all of our immigration controversies.

He was drafted in 1944, and could have returned to Mexico at that time, or stayed and accepted induction into the U.S. Army.

Cisneros chose induction, and remembered his unit engaging in street fighting, searching for snipers and handling German SS prisoners. He also helped to build prefabricated bridges.

“Before I went into the service, I had experienced discrimination,” he said in 2019. “At times I thought ‘what am I fighting for?’ My thoughts were conflicted.

“We saw bodies and the ovens at the Dachau concentration camp, and witnessed the huge mass burials,” he said. “People don’t appreciate this country until they see something like that.”

With other American soldiers of many nationalities, Cisneros became a U.S. citizen at a Bavarian town in 1945, and returned home after the war.

“There was discrimination again when I returned, and I was disgusted,” he said. “People petitioned that they didn’t want Mexicans in this neighborhood, but I didn’t confront them. I tried to help people everywhere and in any way I could.”

Cisneros immersed himself with serving his family, his church and his community in so many activities that there wasn’t room to list all of them. As a proud American who had suffered much discrimination before and after his military service, he also served for many years as a part of the Aurora Commission on Human Relations.

I will always be grateful for my visits with World War II veterans, but will never forget the stories of Mr. Cisneros and Mr. Miller. They embodied the values of courage, compassion and commitment to something greater than themselves.

And their stories also fit perfectly with Hellinger’s closing remarks.

“May we always remember that our veterans did not serve for recognition, but served for a nation worth believing in,” he said. “It is now our duty to make sure that nation remains worthy of their courage and sacrifice.”

Tom Strong is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.