A call to the North Platte/Lincoln County Visitors Bureau last week set the process in motion. It was important to keep the story under wraps for security reasons, and it was only word of mouth that brought the volunteers in to serve the soldiers. Lincoln County Historical Museum Director- Curator Jim Griffin said the similarities were many to the WWII Canteen, for which North Platte has become famous. “The last minute of knowing when anything is coming is exactly the same as what it was” in WWII, Griffin said. Lisa Burke, executive director of the Visitors Bureau, said it was amazing how quickly and enthusiastically the local businesses contributed to the cause. “It was finalized on Thursday exactly when and how many would be coming through,” Burke said Monday. “We’re trying to re-enact, bring back that Canteen spirit.” Many of the soldiers did not know anything about the WWII Canteen, nor did they know what awaited them at their stop in North Platte. “This is a very good surprise,” said Staff Sgt. Thomas Carter. “This is great.” Col. Hal Vineyard agreed it was a big surprise but had not heard about the WWII Canteen prior. “Our bus driver was telling us a little bit about the North Platte Canteen when we pulled up,” Vineyard said. “We were not expecting this at all,” said Cpl. Tayler Scott. “It’s greatly appreciated.”
Shelly Chromy of North Platte volunteered to help serve the dinner. “It’s been overwhelming to have the privilege to serve our service men and women as they come through,” Chromy said. “It’s really neat in that the
Canteen was years prior and now we get to kind of relive that right now.” Sgt. Maj. Steve Griffin said the troops were trav- eling back to their home base after training in Wyoming. “We were just intending to stop and have lunch, and nobody let us know that this was waiting for us,” Griffin said. “It’s amazing. Many of these young men and women have never experienced anything like this.” When Amanda Connick heard the soldiers would be coming through and just wanted to stop for sandwiches, she had a larger idea. “When I got off the phone with the (tour bus company), I went right in to Lisa’s office and said, ‘Can we do something more?’” Connick said. “Can we make this into the North Platte Canteen? And she said, ‘Absolutely.’” In a press release, Burke wrote, “These young men and women hadn’t had a real meal in weeks. They had been out on maneuvers and living off of MREs. Steak sandwiches, cold sandwiches, potato salad, deviled eggs and cookies galore filled the empty stomachs. Continuing a Canteen tradition, nearly two dozen birthday cakes were given out, including for one young man’s 21st birthday, who had never had a birthday cake before.” The smiles on the faces of both the service men and women, as well as the volunteers, told the story as all got a glimpse of what it was like in WWII.
Canteen founder Rae Wilson lives on in the “Canteen Lady” sculpture at North Platte’s 20th Century Veterans Memorial. A marker listing the 125 Canteen Honor Roll towns is embedded nearby. Todd von Kampen / The North Platte Telegraph
146 CANTEEN: AS IT HAPPENED
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