Tooele VFW honor guard pays tribute to fallen comrades

As family and friends of a fallen soldier or veteran gather to say their last goodbyes, a group of the military is also there to honor and pay tribute to those who served their country.

The honor guard of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Harris-Carter Post 9413, based in Tooele, pay their last respects to a fallen comrade or soldier by attending and participating in veterans' funerals. Most of the time, the deceased are strangers to them.

For more than 50 years, Joe Gonzales, 79, has donated his time to participate in these funerals. Gonzales, who served in the Marine Corps from 1948 to 1952, and in the Korean War, is in charge of getting volunteers or members of the Tooele VFW together to attend the services.

"It's the last tribute a guy deserves for serving his country," Gonzales said. "It's just a way to honor a fallen comrade."

The family of the deceased will request military presence at the funeral, and the mortuary will contact Gonzales, who in turn will ensure the honor guard will attend.

While Gonzales likes to get 12 members of the honor guard to a funeral, he said he can function with 10.

Before the funerals, the group tries to meet 30 minutes early to have a dry run and go through the procedures.

At a funeral, the honor guard will perform the 21-gun salute, post the colors and play "Taps." The flag that is draped over the casket is then folded and presented to the family.

For about 20 years, a local family would play the bugle at the funerals, but last year the VFW bought a mechanical bugle that is equipped with a recorder.

"To me, no matter what, it's better with an individual playing it, but this is a pretty fancy outfit too," he said.

Sometimes the guard is given two or three days notice of a funeral, but there are times when they get very short notice, which Gonzales said can make it difficult to find people to attend.

There have been times, like back in November, when there were eight funerals they attended. But a month later, in December, they didn't participate in any funerals.

The requirement to be in the honor guard is one has to be in the military, or belong to a military organization. However, Gonzales said he would like to see the honor guard eventually change to a high school organization. The current honor guard is aging and Gonzales said he's trying to get younger people to participate. There are a few honor guard members in their 60s, but most are in their 70s or 80s.

"Eventually all us old guys are going to be gone someday, and they [younger people] could carry on the tradition," he said. "Most of us are from World War II and the Korean War, so we're old here in Tooele."

While he very seldom knows the person whose funeral he participates in, Gonzales feels it's something he needs to do.

"I feel that I was very lucky to come back all in one piece from the war and I feel honored to do something for a fallen comrade," he said.

Gonzales keeps a record -- a book full of obituaries, thank you notes and lists of honor guard members -- of the funerals they have participated in.

The honor guard has attended funerals in extreme heat and cold, all to show their respect for the deceased.

"We have a bunch of great guys who go out of their way in the cold and everything," Gonzales said. "We've been in some funerals where we're just out there shivering for three or four hours."

Gonzales added other members of the honor guard, not him, deserve all the recognition.

Hal McConnell, commandant of the Sgt. Rodney M. Davis Marine Corps League Detachment, and former commander of the Harris-Carter VFW Post 9413, said Gonzales has been responsible for getting the honor guard to participate in funerals for around 55 years.

"My hat goes off to him and I give him a salute," he said, adding every member of the honor guard deserves notice.

"They walk around that cemetery, some of them with canes, and they're just a great bunch of guys," McConnell said. "I was very proud to be the commander of the VFW post."

Sarah Miley: swest@tooeletranscript.com