NEWS FROM THE HUT by John Hamilton

This is going to be a “Flashback” series about veterans who have been part of the history of the HUT, Post 142 in Hominy, Oklahoma, and part of the history of the Hominy community. All veterans are special patriots and deserve to be honored, but the veterans who are no longer with us also deserve to be honored, and that is the purpose of this “Flashback” series for veterans that have passed into the Hominy Post 142 Post Everlasting Memorial in our hearts

John Alvin Fields

John was born Sept. 5, 1923, in Gillette, Wyoming. He was the son of John Henry and Lillian Pearl (Sanburn) Fields.

He moved with his family to the Middle Enterprise Area west of Hominy. He attended school at Mound Valley, the Middle Enterprise School District and later graduated from Blackburn High School in 1943.

John worked as a ranch hand in the area following the completion of his education until he was drafted into the service of his country into the United States Navy during World War II. In 1944, John Fields attended boot camp at Fort Wallace, Texas. He completed radar operator school at Point Loma, California. Following that he traveled five days and nights cross-country by train from California to the East Coast. John Fields was never land-based during his active duty. He served aboard the U.S.S. Wyffels DE-6 as well as the U.S.S. Jenks DE-665. John served honorably until his discharge in 1946 at Jacksonville, Florida.

He soon returned to the Hominy area and was united in marriage to Lenora Rosa Matin on June 22, 1949, in Barnsdall, Oklahoma. John Alvin and Lenora made their home west of Hominy, where they raised their five children. The two farmed and raised cattle on the family farm. They were married 66 years at the time of her passing.

John and Lenora were horse racing fans, traveling to Omaha, Hot Springs, and Louisiana were their favorite racetracks for many years. John worked alongside his father at the age of nine with a plow and a team of horses. Farming was a very big part of his life. He was a master gardener planting acres of corn, watermelon, cantaloupes, tomatoes, and other vegetables. He raised bird dogs and always enjoyed quail hunting.

He had also worked several years in the oilfields, and he enjoyed playing basketball, softball, and pool. He was selected “Veteran of the Year” by Hominy High School and participated with the Oklahoma Honor Flight to Washington DC in 2013. John was a longtime member of the Hominy American Legion, and he enjoyed his friends at Hominy’s Local Post #142.

John Alvin Fields, 94, passed away peacefully on Wed., March 14, 2018, in Hominy, Okl

Gary Anderson

Gary Anderson is a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, having served eight- and one-half years in the U.S. Marine Corps from I963 to 197l. Gary Anderson was sent to Vietnam three different times for a total of seventeen months of over­ seas duty. He was stationed in I-Corps with the 1st Marine Division out of Danang and Chuli in the Northern part of Vietnam and was awarded the Marine Corps Combat Action Ribbon, Purple Heart, Vietnam Service and Campaign Medals as well as the National Defense Service medal. Gary Anderson was a Marine Infantryman during his military career.

Gary Anderson of Hominy was the 2017 veteran honoree to receive a blanket from the Hominy High School Osage Club. Gary Anderson was a member of the American Legion, Blackwell-Frazier Post 142 for twenty years.

After separating from active duty in the Marine Corps, Gary Anderson began a career in law enforcement, eventually moving to Hominy and working at nearby Dick Conner Correctional Center and eventually retired from the Oklahoma Department of Corrections as a Parole Officer.

Until further notice, our regular Legion meeting will be the third Thursday of each month. Our next meeting will be on Thursday, November 18^th at 7:00 PM. The next Sons of the American Legion (SAL) will be on Thursday, November 18^th at 5:00 PM. The Monday morning Koffee Klatch meeting is at 8:00 AM. If you are a veteran, come by for our monthly meeting, and/or the Monday morning Koffee Klatch meeting. Several of the Post 142 members meet on Wednesday’s at Daylight Donuts on OK-99 around 8:00 AM in Hominy for coffee and a breakfast treat. If you have a good story, it may end up in print. Also, keep up with us at the Post 142 website “americanlegion142.org” and Hominy Legion on Facebook.