The City of Carbondale partnered with Southern Illinois University to fly the flag off of South Normal Avenue and West Grand Avenue at half-staff for Veterans Day in remembrance of those who have served, and in honor of those who are serving and those who will serve. 

SIU Air Force and Army ROTC cadets were set to participate in the vigil with a laying of the wreath, but they were notified on Nov. 4 that they would not be participating due to the government shutdown. 

Aspa Drikos and Noah Oldhan, members of the ROTC Air Force and Squad Commanders for the Arnold Air Service, told the Daily Egyptian that ROTC has been given orders across the nation that they are prohibited from public solicitation while in uniform. 

There had been plans to hold a wreath-laying ceremony while out of service dress, but it was ultimately unaccounted for. 

The ceremony opened with a quick breakdown of the program and an invocation from Tom Harness, an Army veteran and SIU alumnus.

Following the introduction was a proclamation from Carbondale Mayor Carolin Harvey. Her proclamation claimed Nov. 11 a celebration of remembrance to respectfully acknowledge those who have made a sacrifice for their service.

Harness gave remarks during the ceremony, sharing that his inspiration for joining the military sparked from his two father figures: his biological dad, a Navy man named L. B. Harness, and his stepdad, Bob Newton, who was a soldier in the Army. 

Harness said that these are threads that do not connect a flag, they connect generations of service that protect a promise of freedom. 

He recognized the fight that women made just to be able to help protect those freedoms however they could; as medics, as mechanics, as soldiers. 

“The legacy of service isn’t measured in metals and rings…,” he said. 

The SIU Trumpet Studio, led by Ricky Spears, assistant professor of practice at the School of Music, played taps, a tradition when holding military funerals or services of remembrance.

The significance of the wreath is made of many symbols: branches for eternal life, circular shape for eternity and red ribbon for the blood and sacrifice of those who served.

Paul Copeland, coordinator of Veterans’ Services at SIU, concluded the ceremony with the sentiment that the empty chairs around the audience were not for those who did not attend, but for those who were there in spirit.

“I had a double student cadet in the ROTC program who was killed in an aircraft crash in peacetime,” Copeland said. “I tell people, when taps plays, that’s who is next to me… My memory of him, and our service and we walk together still. That’s the empty chair that belongs to him in my world.”

Staff reporter Carmen J. Tapley can be reached at [email protected]. Digital Editor Peyton Cook contributed reporting.

Editor’s Note — An earlier version stated that flags were flown at “half-mast” instead of “half-staff.” While both terms refer to flying a flag at half its normal height, “half-mast” is used for flags on ships and naval stations ashore, while “half-staff” is used for flags on land. This story has been updated to correct that error. 

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