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Portage Library Hosts Big Band Salute To Veterans

Couples dance in the style of the 1940s as drummer Ray McKinley leads the Glenn Miller band at a policemen’s ball in Niagara Falls, New York on Nov. 25, 1963.
AP Photo/Dave Pickoff

Every year the Portage District Library sets up a few display cases that highlight local veterans - like Dock Stowell, an Albion professor who was a conscientious objector during World War II. Local historian Steve Rossio told us his story:

“He decided he didn’t want to fight. He wanted to serve his country, but he didn’t want to carry a gun. So they made him combat medic and he went with an artillery unit. He was involved with fighting through France, he was part of Battle of the Bulge, and so on and so forth. So he saw a lot of combat, but he didn’t carry a rifle. And what’s so unique about this particular collection is that he saved everything - all of his paperwork, his uniform, his equipment. He packed it all in a foot locker and his wife was gracious enough to loan us the items for the display.”

But instead of the display cases alone, the library decided to add something new for Veteran’s Day this year. On November 11th at 7 p.m.the library will turn into a 1940s dance hall. It was librarian Ruth Cowles' idea:

“My idea was to do something different that would still honor the veterans, but yet put a fun twist onto it. So I kind of thought…I remember my grandparents. My grandpa was in World War II and when he came home, he would say the best part was to go dancing with my grandma. And that’s what I thought what would be fun that would be back in the time and it was a dance hall. And I thought we could do that.”

Steve Rossio says this is perfect for those veterans who feel uncomfortable in the spotlight. When the library helped advertise StoryCorps’ Military Voices Initiative a few years ago, Rossio says only five local vets showed up:

“They kept saying things like ‘I was part of a team,’ ‘I don’t want to focus on me. I did my job and I’m proud that I did it but I don’t need to be a hero. I wasn’t a hero. And I ran into a lot of that where, ‘Well, you’re just sharing your story.’ ‘No, no I’m making myself sound like a hero and I don’t like that. So it was kind of an interesting glimpse into their thought process. It wasn’t they were ashamed. It wasn’t that they were upset about what happened. They just didn’t want to be the one that was bragging about what they did.”

Rossio and Cowles hope that this new kind of event will attract all veterans.

The Gull Lake Jazz Orchestra will play Big Band music - a combination of swing, bebop, and other genres of the era. The library will also have employees dressed the part - like the ‘soda jerk’ who will serve non-alcoholic mixed drinks.

“A soda jerk comes from - as far as I understand it - comes from the operation of the taps. So you jerk the taps to get the beverage out,” Rossio explains.

Cowles says she hopes the event will be fun but also inclusive.

“We would just like to honor anyone that’s been in the military. They’ve given up their lives. They’ve given up their time for us to protect us. So that’s why we want to honor them,” she says.

You can attend the Big Band Salute to veterans Friday night at 7 p.m. at the Portage District Library.

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