You came through one more time
Peabody American Legion Auxiliary hosted an excellent celebration Saturday in honor of Veterans Day. A chili feed preceded an inspiring presentation by former Peabody resident Becky Ediger who told the crowd not only of her 22 years as a United States Secret Service agent, but of her appreciation of the many military people and veterans she met along the way.
If you missed hearing her, you missed a lot.
The event also was a fund-raiser for another former Peabody resident who was injured in Kirkuk, Iraq, in August. Pfc. Donald Reas Axtell III lost both his legs when a rocket-powered grenade exploded on his base. He has been at Walter Reed Army Medical Center since shortly after he was wounded and he faces at least a year of surgery and rehabilitation. His mother, Bonnie Axtell, lives at rural Burns and is employed at Peabody Market. Reas attended grade school here in the mid-1980s.
The American Legion women wanted the money from the Veterans Day celebration to help Reas' wife and two young children through the holidays. And they did an excellent job of raising a tidy sum!
I always am amazed at the way our community turns out to support good causes. This one was no exception, drawing lots of local folks as well as people from Burns, Marion, Newton, Wichita, and Chase County. We all had a good time. It was a nice program that included a flag ceremony, musical entertainment by Carol Grosse, a drawing for donated prizes, and a lump-in-the-throat presentation by the American Legion Riders of a stylized flag (signed by those present) to Pfc. Axtell's mother.
There should be a sign somewhere thanking the many people who donated food, talents, goods, or cash to help this young soldier's family, as well as the auxiliary members who organized things so successfully. And the sign should thank the thousands of veterans who, like young Reas Axtell, have given so much — sometimes all — so I can write what I wish in this column and you can choose to read it or not.
Often I hear whining and grousing about living in Peabody. I don't know
I was pretty impressed Saturday with the quality of the event, the enthusiasm of those in attendance, and the results for a young soldier who could be anyone's husband, son, brother, or father from any war.
— SUSAN MARSHALL
