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With respect, honor and gratitude the Harrison County Public Library celebrates veterans this November 11. The library thanks all veterans for their service and shows gratitude by displaying two Hero Trees at the Elizabeth Branch. Sara Deatrick, the Elizabeth lead circulation associate, stated, “There are more than 150 ornaments of past and present Harrison County veterans on our trees.” Sara invites the community to bring in a photo to be scanned and placed on the Hero Tree. Photo ornaments are saved and used on future trees.

The library has two staff members who are veterans. The first is reference assistant Julia Phipps. Phipps is a 6-year veteran and was stationed at Travis Air Force Base in California from 1989 to 1995. She served as an Air Force security police officer for the base during her first three years and trained to become a base paralegal for her last three years of service.

Our second veteran is circulation associate Robert Ohlrich. Ohlrich enlisted in the Navy in 1972 and was a gunner’s mate during his 4-year service on the U.S.S. Guadalcanal. The helicopter carrier housed 2,500 Marines along with a Navy crew of 307 and was stationed in the Mediterranean Sea during the 1973 Yom Kippur War. Ohlrich was trained on surface-to-air missile systems. In 1976 he helped evacuate civilians from Beirut during the Lebanese Civil War. Ohlrich returned to service for one year in 1986 as a Navy chaplain on the U.S.S. Forrestal.

Thank you Julie, Bob and all veterans! You are honored with gratitude for your service to keep our lands safe and our country free.

The public is invited to celebrate Veterans Day by visiting the Frederick Porter Griffin Genealogy branch to research veterans and family history, viewing the Hero Trees at the Elizabeth branch or exercising your freedom to read by checking out a book of your choice from any of the HCPL locations or downloading an eBook with the library app from your favorite app store.