Another Soldier To Honor

A couple of weeks ago, I posted about the "other siblings" to our direct ancestors. One of those was Lee Verne (Vernie) Olofson, brother to Maude Edith Olofson Linn. I learned that, in World War I, Vernie had been a bugler overseas.

Because that was a more unusual role for one of our ancestors, I decided to write to his son, Veryl, who still lives in the Des Moines area. And this week I heard back from Veryl. He sent me the following two photos:

Vernie in his dress uniform

Vernie leading a group of men to the cemetery for a fellow soldier's funeral

Two side notes:

• Veryl writes that he still has his dad's bugle. I'm sure that Veryl would enjoy a call or letter or visit from family members. He knows a great deal about the Olofson line and has many stories to share. If you need an address, please email me privately and I'll get it to you.
• The soldier who was being buried was Andrew Erickson, born in Stratford in 1889, and died in Nevers, France, on February 28, 1919. Originally buried overseas, his body was brought back to the United States nearly 2 years after his death. He is buried at the South Marion Cemetery in Stratford. Andrew's mother was Margaret Leksell. Her sister married a Barquist, so there is a distant relationship between this soldier and our line. Following is one of the obituaries from the Stratford Courier, dated January 20, 1921.

I'm so thankful that Veryl was willing to share these photos and stories about our ancestors. It's one of the wonderful benefits of working on family history, helping and sharing and learning from others.