By Megan Kelley
Editor
mkelley@mihomepaper.com
INDEPENDENCE TWP. — Last week, local veterans Bill and Joette Kunse were honored by students at Clarkston Junior High School at the school’s Veterans Day ceremony.
The event featured several student speakers who spoke about the importance of Veterans Day and gave introductions and background on the Kunses.
The entirety of the ceremony was hosted by students which included speeches from Shay Logan, Evelyn Formaro, Calista Moore, Norah Goss, Tyler Craig and Xavier Abell. Additionally, photos were taken of the event by student photographers Rylee Gabbard, Madeline Dunn and Emma Sardelli.
Logan emceed the ceremony, beginning with welcoming students and other guests.
“Although any day is a good day to thank a veteran, today is an especially important day to thank veterans for volunteering to defend the freedom and independence we enjoy daily,” Logan said.
Up next was Craig, who gave some insight on the tradition and importance of Veterans Day. Craig talked about his grandfather who served in the Vietnam War and how, during that time, veterans were told to essentially hide their service for fear of retribution from the public.
“It is sad that he was not celebrated for the service that his country asked him to do,” Craig said. “My hope is (that) we will change this as a nation.”
Craig also discussed the freedoms we have as citizens of the United States and how they were earned for us by those who fought for those freedoms.
“Throughout history, veterans have fought to protect principles we value such as freedom of speech, religion and assembly and they have done so at a great sacrifice,” Craig said. “If it weren’t for these sacrifices, we would be living in a very different America and would likely live in fear. Veterans deserve our gratitude for giving up their freedoms and their safety to protect the people of America’s safety and freedoms.”
The CJHS band was also in attendance to perform a number of songs for the four main branches of the military including Anchors Away (Navy), The Caisson Song (Army), The Marine’s Hymn (Marines) and The Air Force Song (Air Force).
Abell then took the podium to introduce Bill Kunse.
Bill graduated from Waterford High School in 1960. After graduation, because of the Steel Strike, Kunse was unable to find work and decided to enlist in the army during the Cold War.
He attended basic training at Fort Knox in Kentucky and was eventually selected to serve with the Military Police, training in Fort Gordon, Georgia.
Kunse was trained in dog handling at Lackland Air Force Base.
His first dog, a 110-pound German Shepard named Koldo, was with him throughout and moved with him when he eventually moved to Fort Holabird in Maryland.
There, Kunse played a role in the Vietnam era at the U.S. Army Intelligence and Counterintelligence Center.
“Mr. Kunse and his dog patrolled the perimeter fencing of a launch pad to a 55 foot tall surface to air missile, weighing 12 to 18 tons,” explained Abell. “These missiles were always ready for the defense of our nation.”
Kunse was honorably discharged with the rank of Army Specialist 4.
It was in 1964 at Fort Holabird that Bill would meet his future wife Joette.
Joette was an only child, graduating from Las Plumas High School in California. The daughter of a World War I veteran, Kunse was always inspired by the words of John F. Kennedy, “ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.”
Kunse enlisted at 18 and went to basic training at Fort McClellan in Alabama before moving to Fort Holabird where she served as an Aerial Interpretation Specialist.
“Mrs. Kunse’s job was to interpret photos that came in daily from Vietnam,” explained Shay, who gave Kunse’s introduction. “When the photos arrived, she studied them to find the North Vietnamese soldier positions hidden under camouflage.”
Kunse was also a member of the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corp as a platoon leader where she helped train women in chemical warfare readiness, did physical training and camped together.
Kunse was honorably discharged at the rank of Army Specialist 4 and, at one point, held interim security clearance.
She had intended to head back to California, but stopped in Michigan to visit Bill where he asked her to marry him.
Kunse has continued to participate in a number of community projects, several of which directly benefit veterans including the Daughters of the American Revolution and Wreaths Across America.
Bill and Joette have been married for 64 years and have two children and one granddaughter.
The CJHS students honored Bill and Joette through the ceremony but they will be permanently honored in the school’s Jenna Beno Memorial Courtyard with a stone designed by the school’s art students.
“The mosaic stone contains red and indigo tile pieces mixed with medals representing Mr. and Mrs. Kunse’s service,” said Moore.