DAVID BLACK, PROGRAMS coordinator at Lake Shore Systems, has created a number of military-themed memorial urns for local veterans. The urns now are available at Erickson-Rochon & Nash Funeral Homes. From left are Matt Nash of Erickson-Rochon & Nash, Black and Scott Lewellyn, local representative of the U.P. Honor Flight, which received a $3,000 donation from Lake Shore Systems and Erickson-Rochon & Nash representing the value of Black’s urns. (Submitted photo)

Author and educator Claudia Pemberton of “Love Leaves No One Behind” says this about our military: “America without her soldiers would be like God without His Angels.”

The month of May is marked officially as Military Appreciation Month. Congress designated May as National Military Appreciation Month in 1999 to ensure that our nation was given the right to publicly show their appreciation to the men and women who have served our country in the military (past and present). And it is on Memorial Day each May that we pause to remember the fallen and honor those who gave their lives in service to our country.

To honor our deceased veterans in a special way, David Black, programs coordinator at Lake Shore Systems, has used his woodworking talents to create a number of beautifully crafted memorial urns dedicated to our local veterans.

“I started the project about nine months ago after I read about a veterans’ charitable organization build in a woodworking periodical that I subscribe to,” Black said.

The organization, Missing in America, has a mission to locate the unclaimed cremains of veterans who either were indigent or had no next of kin to afford the dignified military burial service they deserved.

Lake Shore Systems is an ardent supporter of all veteran-related causes in our area and Black’s project took a bit of a turn after listening to the most recent U.P. Honor Flight presentation at Lake Shore.

“Listening to all of the veterans’ emotional recollections of their personal experiences when participating on the Honor Flight was quite moving to me.

“The presentation and their stories clearly illustrated just how significant the U.P. Honor Flight program is to the veterans in our community,” Black said.

It was then that he changed gears and sought to make this charitable project one that was beneficial to an organization more closely tied to our local community and to the local veterans who have served. “How can I utilize these urns that I started building to benefit the U.P. Honor Flight?” Black asked himself.

Black decided to reach out to Scott Lewellyn, who is a board member and the local representative of the U.P Honor Flight organization. Lewellyn was involved with the Lake Shore presentation coordinated by Kellie Sexton, community relations manager at Lake Shore.

What Black did not know at the time of his call was that Lewellyn also helps serve the needs of families and veterans as a funeral assistant to Tom and Matt Nash and the staff at Erickson-Rochon & Nash Funeral Homes.

“I was excited to hear from David when he called to share his thoughts regarding the military-themed memorial urns,” Lewellyn said, adding, “I was truly impressed by the quality and attention to detail David gave to each urn when we got together at his woodworking shop. His vision to honor our local veterans with urns crafted from local alder wood with a combination finish of mahogany and honey maple came right from his heart. Each urn is designed to have an inlaid branch of service medallion and an engraved gold plated faceplate detailing the veteran’s years of life and military service. The urns David produced are a work of art.”

Lewellyn presented a sample of the urns and some gifting ideas to Matt Nash the next day. Without hesitation, Nash commented, “The quality of these military urns are the best I have ever seen. Whatever we can do to pay tribute to our veterans, care for the veteran’s families and include the U.P. Honor Flight organization in our support, we will do it.”

A matching gift idea that represents the value of Black’s urns was proposed to Matt Nash and Sexton. The U.P Honor Flight was presented with a check for $3,000 on behalf of Lake Shore Systems and Erickson-Rochon & Nash Funeral Homes.

“In this time of uncertainty, we are really happy to share in such a positive story and continue to support our veterans and the U.P. Honor Flight program,” Sexton said.

“I am thrilled to have my military urns available exclusively through Erickson-Rochon and Nash to honor the service and the memory of loved ones,” Black said.

“The number one reason U.P. Honor Flight is able to continue our twice-yearly flights to Washington D.C. is because of the dedicated and patriotic support of people like David Black and the generous financial support of businesses like Lake Shore Systems and Erickson-Rochon and Nash,” Lewellyn said.

Matt Nash, Tom Nash and the funeral director staff of Scott Lutey, Tom Erickson, Amber Johnson and Greg Calzetta at Erickson-Rochon & Nash invites all local veterans and their families to schedule a time to be guided in arranging for memorial services. “We are well-known and highly respected for our compassionate care and professional integrity as we continue to assist in the special planning of our military services,” Matt Nash said.

Lake Shore Systems and Erickson-Rochon & Nash leads our community in saluting each and every local veteran. We would be honored to answer any questions you have concerning the Military Memorial Urn or U.P. Honor Flight program. Contact Matt Nash at 906-774 -7676 or nashfuneralhome@gmail.com, or Lewellyn at 906-396-0131 or slewellyn@uphonorflight.org.