The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
by Jean Dougherty, for The Quill
Hundreds of people from all walks of life and all ages came together on May 4th to honor a fallen hero. Family and friends of George Price were blessed with a glorious, sunny day in which to honor his sacrifice and lay him to rest with full military honors in Dallas City.
Navy Fireman 1st Class George Price died December 7, 1941, on the USS Oklahoma at Pearl Harbor. He was 23 years young.
George's remains were identified via DNA analysis by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency in the fall of 2021 and returned to his hometown of Dallas City for burial.
George had six sisters and six brothers. Sadly, they had all passed away when George's remains were identified in 2021.
Surviving relatives include four nephews and three nieces, who were born after George died. They heard stories of Uncle George from their mothers and knew the heartache they experienced.
Our connection to George is through family friends, George’s nephews and niece: Roger, Frank, Steve and Patty Freeman, all graduates of La Harpe High School.
Their mother, Pearl, was George's sister. George was laid to rest between Pearl and his niece, Dolores, in the Harris Cemetery. Roger showed us a photo of his Uncle George in uniform standing beside his mother, which she had kept by her bed.
George's niece, Minister Joyce Martin, officiated at the moving funeral service at Banks and Beals Funeral Home in Dallas City near the Mississippi River. US Navy Chaplain Ron Pettigrew, Director of the WIU Veterans Resource Center in Macomb, presented Minister Joyce with a shadow box containing George's medals, including the World War II Victory Medal.
“The war was not won without the sacrifice and the service of those who stood the watch at the beginning of the war,” Pettigrew said. “We’re blessed to welcome a local hero home”
Rolling Thunder chairman Wayne Kirkpatrick, Illinois Chapter, spoke of service and sacrifice, while the Rolling Thunder members stood at attention. Family members were given the opportunity to speak about their memories of Uncle George through their mothers' stories. The US Navy Honor Guard served as casket bearers.
The funeral procession, consisting of over 100 vehicles, was led by a Rolling Thunder motorcycle escort playing "The Star Spangled Banner" on loudspeaker. Men, women and school children, including a 100-year old WWII Navy veteran, lined the funeral route with hands over hearts, saluting the procession amid hundreds of US flags fluttering in the breeze.
The rolling hills of Harris Cemetery were resplendent with US flags, service flags, US Navy personnel, veterans, law enforcement personnel, first responders, family and friends. Navy Chaplain Pettigrew conducted the military funeral with honors, including US Navy casket detail, rifle salute, Taps, folding of the burial flag and presentation of the folded US flag to George's niece, Joyce Martin.
There were hundreds of people involved in the day’s ceremonies. Banks and Beals planned and coordinated the events in conjunction with George's family members, the US Navy Chaplain and US Navy Honor Guard, Rolling Thunder members, American Legion and VFW members, Illinois State Police, Hancock County Sheriff’s Department, Henderson County Sheriff’s Department, Dallas City Police Department, La Harpe Police Department, Carthage Police Department, Hamilton Police Department, Dallas City Fire Department, and numerous volunteers who placed 800 US flags along the funeral procession route the day before and removed them all the next day. The flags were provided through the Flagman's Mission. One of the Rolling Thunder members from Chicago commented on how great “small town America” is.
Special music for George’s service included “Shall We Gather at the River”. For Joyce Martin it was a day to celebrate. “We’re celebrating that he’s finally going to be where he should have been all along. Uncle George grew up on this river. They lived off of this river. To be able to come together as a family, as friends, as military and to pay him honor by this river is a blessing from God.”
Uncle George’s burial closed a chapter of the family’s history and offered a reminder about the importance of service for our country. May he rest in peace.