Angels Camp, July 6, 2015 – Hundreds attend the 4th annual Angels Camp 4th of July celebration held
in Utica Park on July 4th. As a soft breeze rustled the leaves and billowed the American flag – which had once flown proudly over the Alameda Naval Station on the date of her decommission – veterans, friends and families gathered in hushed silence awaiting the beginning of the ceremony to honor those in our community who had served
in the United States military.

The traditional games that had been played by the children; tug-of-war, water balloon toss, pie eating
and more, were put on hold as Master of Ceremonies Captain Jim Dodge, US Navy retired, called the
ceremony to begin with the presentation of colors.

VFW Post 12118 honor guard, lead by honor captain Kevin Reimman, presented the colors, followed by
branch of service flag bearers carrying a flag of each branch of the military. The Declaration of Independence was read by Bill Soest and the National Anthem was sung by Denni
Oravec.

Quilts of Honor were presented to 15 veterans by Gail Belmont, President of Quilts of Honor. The
recipients were: Cliff Caldwell WWII Army/Air Force, Wilbur Eberhardt WWII Merchant Marine,
Walter Neller WWII Army/Air Force, Earl Walsh WWII/Korea Air Force, Jack Lynch Korea Army,
Vernon Rackovich Korea Army, William (Bill) Skellenger Korea Army, Reed Severson Korea Navy,
Keith Bibee Vietnam Army, Dennis Dooley Vietnam Navy Air, Al Gilbert Vietnam Navy Seabees, Bill
Soest Transition Air Force, Angela Sheble Desert Storm USMC, Robert Moncada Iraq Air Force and
Kevin Reimman Iraq Army.

Following the quilt presentation the names of each veteran present were called by Captain Dodge. As
veterans’ names were called out one-by-one they stood and were recognized for their service and their
commitment to keeping America free. Those in our community who are currently serving were also
recognized by name.

The ceremony came to a close with the singing of God Bless America.
As the ceremony came to an end people began milling about shaking the hands of those who served and
thanking them for their service. The crowds continued the celebration by enjoying the music of the
Fabulous Off Brothers, local food vendors and various arts and crafts booths with local vendors and
entrepreneurs showing their creative wares.

The annual event is organized by the Commemorative Committee of the Angels Camp Business Association, and supported by dozens of local businesses including to Angels Camp Trading Post-STP Shell, Mark Twain Medical Center, the City of Angels, CAMPS restaurant, Sanguinetti / Mark Twain Insurance, Century 21 Sierra Properties, Calaveras Visitors Bureau, and Foothill Printing.