Other retirement communities
can't hold a candle
to our Chanukah gift offer.
After the ceremony, some laid wreaths, some wept.
Battle Creek Rites
Honor German POWs
ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM ASSISTANT EDITOR
tanding before a line of
gray marble tomb-
stones, their tops
blanketed with a
ribbon of snow, some 100
German-Americans and U.S.
veterans gathered outside
Battle Creek this week to
memorialize 26 former Nazi
soldiers.
Held each year at the Fort
Custer National Cemetery
in Augusta, the ceremony is
the only one of its kind, out-
side Germany, to com-
memorate Volkstrauertag
(Germany's "Day of Nation-
al Mourning").
Sixteen of the 26 men, held
as POWs during World War
II, perished in an accident in
1945. The rest died of
natural causes.
The service began at 2 p.m.
last Sunday. Decorated for
the occasion with the red-
yellow-black flags of Ger-
many, the tombstones bear
names like Kurtz Ludwig,
Alois Wadle, Philipp Allman
and Wilhelm Marschollek.
Some have crosses; others
are stark, showing only the
name and date of death.
Though temperatures
were chilly and the ground
i.. was covered with thick
snow, guests came from as
far as Ohio and Canada and
ncluded a few German
tourists. Minutes before the
ceremony was to begin, a
chartered busload of Ger-
man-Americans arrived. By
-
.
then, the entire road leading
to the area was filled with
cars.
Following a brief invoca-
tion by a local minister, who
asked God to "please make
us better men," members of
the Teutonia Mixed Choir
from Windsor performed the
American and German na-
tional anthems. The words
have been changed — con-
temporary lyrics call for
freedom and unity "fuer das
deutsche Vaterland"; the
Nazis' demanded,
"Germany, Germany over
everything else" — but the
music is the same as during
Hitler's time.
As the choir performed the
German anthem, members
of the audience sang along.
Several of the women wore
mink stoles, while one guest
had a cap virtually covered
with pins — an American
flag, a rainbow. Many of the
U.S. veterans were in full
military garb, including one
soldier whose left ear bore a
diamond.
Eugene Chambers, direc-
tor of the Fort Custer Na-
tional Cemetery, lamented
the deceased, whom he
called "fine gentlemen
buried so far from their
homeland."
Others who offered words
included a representative for
Gov. John Engler and
several Michigan politi-
•
Eight free gifts. That's what you'll receive when you move to The Trowbridge
by January 15. Our eight Chanukah gifts to you are:
• One free family dinner for ten
• One month free rent
• Free chandelier
• Free guest apartment for one weekend
• Three free guest meals a month for one year • Free Chanukah gift basket
• Free dreidel and Chanukah gelt
• Five hours free in-home care services
These special gifts are in addition to the many fine services and amenities all
Trowbridge residents enjoy, such as a spacious
apartment, dinners, weekly housekeeping,
maintenance and scheduled transportation.
To find out more about The Trowbridge and
A PREMIER RENTAL
your eight Chanukah gifts, call or write today.
RETIREMENT COMMUNITY
313 352 0208 • 24111 Civic Center Drive • Southfield, MI 48034
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ever
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or the entire
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