Mike Harden chosen to lead Ottawa Honor Guard Vigil

Mike Harden is proud to stand a post for his fellow comrades at arms.

Harden, of Grand Ridge, a retired career soldier born and raised in Ottawa and the adjutant of Ottawa American Legion Post 33, will be the lead veteran to stand a shift Friday afternoon at the 15th annual Honor Guard Vigil in Ottawa.

“It’s an honor to be the first one who goes up there to start this vigil,” Harden said. “It’s the 15th year in a row we’ve done this and I’ve done it every year. It’s always a great honor to be a part of it.”

The event – a thank you to veterans – will begin with a ceremony at 4:40 p.m. at the War Memorial in Washington Square in downtown Ottawa and end at 5 p.m. on Saturday.

During the vigil, a total of 96 veterans will stand a 15 minute shifts in honor of their fellow veterans.

It is expected that there may be participants from Illinois Veterans Home in La Salle, the La Salle County Nursing Home, Pleasant View, Ottawa Pavilion, Heritage Woods and the Sea Cadets from Chicago, actually any veteran who is physically able and would like to participate is more than welcome to take part.

Some shifts still are available. For details call John Duback at 815-993-3956.

“It’s a great thing because it gives us veterans a chance to visit with each other,” Harden said. “It’s a good meet-and-greet for us, new veterans with old veterans … What makes it all worthwhile, too, is that you can have family members stand with you. I like to have my grandkids stand with me so I can explain to them why we do this vigil so they can understand the pride we have in our fellow veterans, and instill that pride in them.”

A 1976 graduate of Ottawa High School, Harden joined the Army for four years in April of 1977. His first duty station was Fort Riley, Kansas, where his son, Kevin, was born to he and his wife, Martha, before they moved to Germany for the remainder of his enlistment.

The Hardens have three children: Kevin, who works with the Illinois Department of Transportation; Jennifer, a teacher at Waltham School; and Scott, an Ottawa police officer.

“It was a good experience,” Harden said, for both he and his wife. But, with a young child, the prospect of making regular moves to new duty stations was not appealing to Martha. It was a challenge for a lot of families, Harden said.

So, at the end of Harden’s enlistment, they returned to Ottawa. There he joined the Illinois Army National Guard and took a full-time position at the now-demolished armory in Ottawa working on tanks, personnel carriers, wheels vehicles and weaponry systems.

When the Marseilles Training Center opened, he began working there. One chief function has been to help ready mobilized reserve units for deployment overseas.

“Ever since Desert Storm (in 1990) the Marseilles Training Center has been a busy place,” Harden said.

“We would make sure they had the equipment and tools they were supposed to have and to make sure their personnel were trained as far as repairs they might have to undertake while they were there.”

Over the years, Harden advanced in rank to Master Sergeant, as far as his position would allow.

With encouragement, he completed the training to become a warrant officer, a speciality junior officer, rising to the rank of Warrant Officer 4 when he retired in 2013.

“I’d do it all over again,” Harden said. “I enjoyed the people you meet, the camaraderie you have with them and how everybody worked as a team.”

About 12 years ago, Harden joined Ottawa American Legion Post 33, serving nearly all of that time with the Honor Guard. Besides appearing in parades and patriotic events, the Honor Guard provides funeral rites for deceased veterans. They include firing a rifle salute, playing taps and folding the casket flag.

“It’s how we show respect and appreciation for the veteran to his family and friends in an uplifting way,” Harden said.

The public is invited to the vigil. Coffee and snacks will be served. There will be military vehicles, an Avenue of Flags displayed by Ottawa First and a Ham Radio Field Days demonstration.

Schedule of events

2:30 to 3 p.m. Friday and Saturday: Flutes for Vets music

4:40 p.m. Friday: Opening ceremony

5 p.m. Friday: Post Lead Honor Guard, Kenneth M. Harden; Mayor Robb Hasty, guest speaker

11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday: John F. Kennedy Sea Cadets/Chicago on duty

3 to 5 p.m. Saturday: Tunes of Glory bagpipers

5 p.m. Saturday: Closing ceremony, remarks, rifle salute.