Memorial Day

Although I spent the greater part of Memorial Day at school donating my time in order to help get me ready to check out for the summer, I was reminded constantly that Memorial Day is set aside to honor our heroes.  I couldn't be in Streator, IL, at the cemetery to decorate the graves of my military family members, but I had them in my heart.

First and foremost, I remember my father.  A member of Tom Brokaw's Greatest Generation, Floyd Covill was born into poverty and raised during the Depression.  He found a way out of his family's plight through ahtletics.  He was chosen one of the top 25 high school athletes during his senior year, and was selected by Illinois State Normal University for a college scholarship.  He went to ISNU to study education to become a teacher, all the while playing football for the Redbirds.  (He was inducted into now-ISU's Football Hall of Fame.)  After college, he was offered a position with a professional football team in New York but took teaching/coaching positions, instead, to support his young wife and family.  When World War II started, he accepted a commission with the United States Naval Reserve and launched into active duty.  Lt. JG Covill was assigned to the USS Henrico APA 45 (a troop transport) on which he served as Navigator for the duration of the war, then remained on active duty during the Korean Conflict, and other duty after both wars were over.  Years later, he retired as a Commander and resumed his teaching career.  Dad rarely spoke of the horrors of war, so I errantly assumed that he hadn't seen any.  I was wrong.  He simply chose to protect his family from those memories because THAT is why he went to war to begin with--to protect his family from having to live with foreign domination.  Dad had no politics, to speak of.  He taught us respect for authority.  When I asked if he agreed with one president or other, his response always was:  "He is the Commander-in-Chief!"  Commander (USNR Ret.) Floyd Darwin Covill passed away in 1994, but I will always and forever salute the man whose service to his country and family was second to none. 

I remember my Uncle Bud.  Lt. Colonel George Edward Armstrong, my mother's brother, joined the US Army as a career man in his younger years.  He also served during World War II and Korea, decorated with a Purple Heart and the Army's Silver Star, among others.  During the Korean Conflict, Uncle Bud's unit was under fire when he took a hit in his left thigh.  He thought the Chinese were throwing rocks--until he felt his own warm blood running down his leg.  They wanted to evacuate him for medical care, but he refused to leave until he was sure that the situation was secure and his men were safe.  When he was forced to retire in his 40's due to diabetes, the Army hired him back on as a civilian, doing the same work in Washington DC, but with higher pay!  Uncle Bud was highly intelligent and wise, self-effacing, a wonderful storyteller, and easy to listen to--with the patience of Job.  When my mother (his sister) died in 1986, we begged to know how we could possibly get along without her.  His advice:  Close ranks.  He was right, of course.  And when he died, years later, the flag in our hearts flew at half-mast for months.

I remember my brother, EM3 F. Douglas Covill, who joined the Navy a year after high school.  Serving for 9 years, mostly on the USS Kawishiwi, Doug had tales to tell.  His ship was involved in the eventual evacuation of troops from Vietnam in the early 70's, and his eloquent writing style in his newsy letters home always were a focus of attention in the family.  When Doug shipped out of the Navy, he went on to become an electrician and engineer in a die casting factory in Chicago--then another company later.  Doug died suddenly on December 31, 2005, at the ripe old age of 52.  I'm not over the shock yet.

There are others:  My Uncle Bob who served in a shipyard.  My Aunt Rosie, with the Coast Guard.  My ancestors who served in the Civil War.  I honored them all this Memorial Day, 2006.