Ceremony to honor of Uhrichsville sailor, others killed at Pearl Harbor
UHRICHSVILLE (WJER) (Dec. 6, 2024) – The Twin Cities community is again remembering one of its own on the 83th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
The yearly tribute to Ensign James Haverfield is tomorrow morning at Uhrichsville City Park. All are invited to the service that begins at 7:55 sharp – when the first bombs reportedly fell on the harbor. Bob Michels is the Master of Ceremonies.
“We have to pay tribute to those who served our country, for without them who knows whether we would have the freedoms that we do today,” said Michels, who emceed the yearly ceremony since its inception in the early 2000s. “Obviously, it’s a very cold morning but people brave the weather and come out to pay tribute, which is something we need to do before we can truly celebrate Christmas.”
A moment of silence will be observed at 8:10 – the time the USS Arizona was struck, killing the Uhrichsville native and more than 1,100 other service members on board.
“We are involving Claymont High School and Claymont Middle School students. We try to keep that knowledge going as to what happened in 1941,” Michels said. “We also have sailors coming that served aboard the U.S.S Haverfield, which was named after Ensign Haverfield. They come from afar – some of them as far as Florida – just for this short service. They feel it’s very important as well and they come every year, which we’re grateful for.”
All are invited to the ceremony that typically lasts about 20 minutes and will be followed by a reception at Big Bend Golf Course.