By Mark Scheer
Niagara Gazette
WHEATFIELD —
He had the job for two years back in the early 1960s.
Not has a day has gone by since that John Ranum hasn’t given thanks for the privilege.
On occasion, someone else reminds him why it was such an honor to guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C.
“We met a fella in North Dakota a couple of years ago and I was wearing a cap that said “Tomb of the Unknown Soldier,” Ranum said. “He said ‘I’ve been there.’ He said, ‘were you one of the guards?’ I said ‘yes sir.” He got tears in his eyes and shook my hand and he said ‘as far as I’m concerned, you were guarding my father. He went on to tell about how late in World War II they got word that his father was missing in action in Germany and that’s the last he knew. I shook his hand and said that’s why we do it.”
In 1961 and 1962, Ranum held one of the U.S. military’s highest honors as a ceremonial guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns, a monument dedicated to American service members who died without their remains being identified. The Montana resident, who was passing through Niagara County on his way to his wife’s high school reunion in Courtland, addressed a crowd of more than 80 people who gathered for Monday’s meeting of the Niagara County Patriots at the Town of Wheatfield recreation center.
Ranum, now 74, offered some insight into what it was like to serve as a sentinel of the Third U.S. Infantry Regiment, the unit known as the “Old Guard” which stands watch over the remains of unknown American soldiers from World Wars I and II, the Korean Conflict all day, at night, on weekends, during holidays and in the rain, sleet, snow and whatever else Mother Nature can bring.
While the sentinels are favorites of tourists visiting the Washington, D.C. area due to their dedication and elaborate rituals, Ranum said, for him, the job was about honoring soldiers who were lost in battle and the loved ones they left behind.
“Those three represent 10,600 unknowns from those three wars,” Ranum said of the Unknown Soldiers from World War I and II and Korea who are buried at the Tomb. “That means there’s that many people back here wondering what happened to my son, or what happened to my husband?”
Sentinels have been standing guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns since July 2, 1937 to ensure that the Unknown Soldiers forever rest with dignity and honor. The guard is changed hourly between Oct. 1 and March 31. Between April 1 and Sept. 30, another change is added on the half hour. The sentinels are known for their elaborate changing of the guard ceremony. While on duty, they pace 21 steps across a black mat on the west face of the Tomb as part of a time-honored ritual that is executed with great precision.
All sentinels undergo rigorous training before they are allowed to be stationed at the Tomb. Individuals passing the training earn prestigious Tomb Guard badges. To date, 578 soldiers have been issued the badge, including Ranum.
Ranum noted that the identification badge can be revoked if a soldier disgraces him or herself in a manner that brings dishonor on the Tomb.
“I want you folks to know,” said Ranum, proudly holding up his sentinel badge, “I still have one.”
“I also have a wife who reminds me every once in a while that it can be revoked,” he quipped.
These days, Ranum is a member of the Society of The Honor Guard, Tomb of the Unknown, a non-profit group that works to protect and enhance the welfare and image of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the soldiers who stand guard, past and present. The organization, which formed in 1998, provides scholarships for service members and their families and support for “wounded warriors,” soldiers who have been injured in combat. Ranum is a member of the society’s education committee.
“I don’t think there’s a day that goes by that I don’t have some thought about it,” Ranum said of his days being a guard at the Tomb.
For more information about the Society visit www.Tombguard.org.
