Hiemstra touched by displays of support for Honor Fight vets

(Editor's note: This is the second in a pair of stories of local veterans who traveled on the most recent Siouxland Honor Flight to Washington, D.C.)

One hundred eight World War II veterans from the Siouxland area participated in the third Siouxland Honor Flight Oct. 13, to Washington, D.C., including several Plymouth County residents.

Harley Hiemstra, a retired Kingsley area farmer, waited until this third Honor Flight to apply.

In his work with the Plymouth County REC, Hiemstra had traveled to Washington, D.C., several times and had visited several of the memorials, but hadn't seen the World War II Memorial or Air Force Memorial.

"Both of them were tremendous," Hiemstra said.

Hiemstra was deeply touched by the sendoff the group got at the airport in Sioux City and the water cannon salute after landing at Dulles Airport in Washington, D.C. The return to Sioux City with a band playing at the airport, and people lined up to congratulate and thank the veterans for their service, even at 1:30 a.m. was also something special.

"I'm a sentimental guy and that got to me," he said with a catch in his voice.

Hiemstra served in the Army from April 1943 to April 1946, and was stationed in the European Theater.

"I was in the medical corp, working in a general hospital behind the front lines," Hiemstra said. His job as a chief noncommissioned officer was to fill out health forms on the injured soldiers.

During his time there, each day between 1,200 to 1,500 soldiers were brought in every afternoon, that needed to be checked and moved on to proper care.

"If they would be ready to go back to duty, we kept them in our hospital," Hiemstra said.

Those needed 30 to 90 days of recuperation were sent to France. Those needing care for 90 to 120 days were sent to England. "Anything over that, we sent them back to the United States," said Hiemstra.

"We were busy every day, seven days a week," he added.

The hospital even treated German soldiers, he said.

"Toward the end, after the Battle of the Bulge, the Germans came in with badly frozen legs, which had to be amputated," he said. "We kept them until they were better and then sent them to a prisoner camp."

On his Honor Flight trip, Hiemstra said he talked with one gentleman who said he probably went through the hospital were Hiemstra was stationed.

"At the time, he thought he'd have to have his leg amputated, but he was sent to England and they were able to save it," Hiemstra said.

Hiemstra was very impressed with the changing of the guard at Arlington National Cemetery.

"They have to be really dedicated to that, a strict march and all," he said.

Hiemstra said he hasn't talked much about his experience during World War II.

"No one asks you, so you don't bring it up yourself," he said. "I don't know of all my family knows what I did."

Since the Honor Fight, he's talked with his son and daughter-in-law, and a close friend.

"As I talk with them about the trip, they ask a few questions and that leads you to talk about it," Hiemstra said.

The 88-year-old Kingsley native graduated from Union School.

"That's as far away as my family has been," he said.

He was 22 when he entered the service.

The trip brought back memories of the sacrifices both the military personnel and families back home made for their country, Hiemstra said.

"One thing that got me, at the World War II Memorial, was the people saying thank you to us veterans," he said. "That gets to you."