CARIBOU, Maine — Blistering winds punctuated a cold Nov. 11 at the Northern Maine Veterans Cemetery in Caribou, as service men and women and supporters huddled to honor veterans and the late John Noble, who donated 33.4 acres of land in 1999 to create the cemetery.
NMVC Board Chairman Harry Hafford thanked everyone for attending the 15th annual Veterans Day ceremony at the facility and asked the guests who were able to stand for a moment of silence before he shared a few anecdotes about Noble.
“When John first donated the land,” Hafford said, “he had the wisdom to set aside 100 feet around the cemetery in case we had problems.”
That land eventually was used to plant trees along the Lombard Road to use as a “privacy buffer,” Hafford said, so visitors could come and see their families without “people driving up and down the road and gawking at them.”
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- U.S. Sen. Angus King braves frigid winds to deliver the keynote address at the Northern Maine Veterans Cemetery in Caribou on Veterans Day. (Christopher Bouchard)
Additionally, Hafford said Noble later helped add restrooms along the buffer, and that he eventually turned over another 12 and a half acres of land, making the entire facility close to 46 acres today.
Noble died on Oct. 13 at the age of 85.
“I’m sure everyone here, and the entire Northern Maine Veterans Cemetery Committee, will agree with me when I say that John was an honorable, decent man with a big heart, who will be dearly missed,” Hafford said.
The half hour event also featured a keynote address by Sen. Angus King and acapella performances of “Amazing Grace” and “The National Anthem” by Jamie Deschesne. Father Paul Labrie did the invocation and benediction, and Kim Rohn and Phil Bossie gave speeches on behalf of U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin and U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, respectively. Larry Hall also played taps and members of the American Legion Post 147 of Madawaska fired off a 21-gun salute.
In addition to the 21 gun salute, Saturday’s event included a single additional volley fired in memory of John Noble.
Before delivering his speech, Sen. King went into the audience and lent his hat to a guest who was holding his ears because of the cold.
“I don’t know whether he didn’t want to listen to me or his ears were cold,” King joked. “I didn’t want him to have that excuse.”
Acknowledging the frigid wind and temperature, King added, “This is going to be the shortest speech by a United States senator you’ve ever heard,”
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- Larry Hall plays taps at the conclusion of the Nov. 11 Veterans Day Ceremony at the Northern Maine Veterans Cemetery in Caribou. (Christopher Bouchard)
His oration began with an analysis of the national anthem, which was performed a few minutes prior to his address, and how it ends with a question.
“Oh say does that star spangled banner yet wave, o’er the land of the free and home of the brave,” King repeated. “That’s a question. I believe that question has to be answered by each generation.”
He told attendants that the answer to the aforementioned question is also contained within the question.
“We will only be the land of the free as long as we are also the home of the brave,” he said,” and that’s what today is all about. It’s about honoring those who have been brave, those who have stepped up to serve this country.”
The senator also shared a quote about veterans, saying he would reveal who made the statement afterward: “The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive how the veterans of earlier wars were treated and appreciated.”
“George Washington said that almost 250 years ago,” King said. “The willingness of our young people to serve in wars will depend on how they notice veterans are treated from generation to generation. We’re here on this beautiful cold Maine day to show young people in this country the respect we have for our veterans.”
King finished with another quote, this time from Joshua Chamberlain, a Civil War veteran who also served as Maine’s governor: “In great deeds something abides. On great fields, something stays. Forms change and pass; bodies disappear; but spirits linger, to consecrate ground for the vision-place of souls. Generations that know us not and that we know not of, heart drawn to see where and by whom great things were suffered and done for them, shall come to this deathless field, to ponder and dream. And lo, the shadow of a mighty presence shall wrap them in its bosom, and the power of the vision pass into their souls.”
“This is sacred ground,” King told the guests. “This is sacred ground in Maine and America. We’re all here today to honor those who made the sacrifice, who have been the brave, to keep us the land of the free.”
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- Members of American Legion Post 147 of Madawaska perform a 21 gun salute during a Veterans Day ceremony at the Northern Maine Veterans Cemetery. A single shot also was fired beforehand in honor of John Noble, who died this fall and who had donated about 46 acres in all to help create the cemetery. (Christopher Bouchard)
