More than a century ago, Pvt. Homer A. Armstrong, a 27-year-old from Philomath, gave the ultimate sacrifice while serving in the U.S. Army during the Great War, which would become known as World War I.
Armstrong was killed at Contres, France, on July 31, 1918.
On Monday at 2 p.m., on the 105th anniversary of his death, a bugler dressed as a doughboy will play “Taps” in his honor at the World War I Memorial in Washington, D.C. Philomath residents and anyone else who would like to take a moment and watch the ceremony, click on this link. If you missed it live, you can still go to the link and watch the recording.
American Legion Marys River Post No. 100 in Philomath made a donation to the Doughboy Foundation to bring recognition to Armstrong’s sacrifice. It’s part of the foundation’s daily Taps ceremony, which takes place each evening at 5 p.m. (Eastern time) at a flagpole located in the northwest corner of the memorial, and offers the opportunity for a dedication to an individual soldier to be included.
Eric Niemann, who pens occasional columns for Philomath News, plans to write about Armstrong in an upcoming “Love of Learning” piece.
(Brad Fuqua is publisher/editor of the Philomath News. He can be reached at News@PhilomathNews.com).