PINE, Idaho — The American Legion Post 101 has a special memorial for an unknown World War II soldier and an Air Force veteran named Charles Howard in the Idaho backcountry.
The ashes of these two veterans rest on top of a ridge overlooking Fall Creek Marina and Anderson Ranch Reservoir. The memorial is guarded by the American flag and the POW-MIA flag.
"We don’t like to see the flags get tattered or torn, but the wind up there is just horrible on our flags," said Abe Abrahamson of the American Legion.
Our Steve Dent joined Abe and fellow veteran Dan Thweatt for a snowmobile ride up to the ridge so they could replace the flags with new ones.
"We try to go up about every three months and change those out," said Abrahamson. "We do it just to pay respect to all veterans and the ashes of the veterans that are up there."
Changing the flags in the winter means a snowmobile trip from Pine into the hills and up to the ridge where the flags fly, but that is just fine with Abe and Dan.
"I’ve snowmobiled my whole life. I love the outdoors, the wilderness is beautiful in the summer, but in the winter it is a whole new ballgame," said Abrahamson.
American Legion Post 101 out of Mountain Home also became the first legion post in the country to put together an off-road riding program that they debuted during the pandemic.
"Even though they had to be separated because of COVID, the veterans were still able to be together and share that camaraderie," said Abrahamson. "They were able to check up on one another, which is important for veterans."
The Legion plans on hosting the next off-road riding event in the spring when the snow melts and in three more months they will make another trip up to the memorial to replace the flags.
