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attention, Valley legisla- this is happening, ourtors also secured money nation’s agriculturalfor border law enforce- industry and food supplyBLOCKFROM PAGE C1But Cleckler said the pamphlets became more than a convenient excuse after the recruiter onduty enticed the trio to enlist.Block’s decision, Cleckler said, was not popular with his Seventh-day Adventist parents whose religion called for the strict following of the Bible’s 10 commandments, including “Thou shalt not kill.”“His mother was disappointed,” Cleckler said.itAccording to the book Flags of Our Fathers” by James Bradley, which chronicles the lives of the men who raised theflag in Rosenthal’s photograph, Belle Block pleaded with her son to go into the medical fieldinstead of the military,but Harlon Block insisted and enlisted on Feb.18, 1943.Cleckler still wears the Marine Corps ringHarlon Block gave him while both were stationed in Pearl Harbor,Hawaii. Although neither knew where the next battlefield lay, Cleckler said, his longtime friend felt like he would meet his end there.“He said, T don’t know where we’re going. Give (my mother) this ring and tell her she was right,’” Cleckler said of the conversation he had with Harlon Block. (After returning from the war) I told her to take it, but she said no and told me to keep it.” Harlon Block was one of some 30,000 Marinesto land on the beaches ofIwo Jima on Feb. 19, 1945, and after fierce fighting was one of the six men captured in Rosenthal’s photographon Feb. 23,1945.But identifyingHarlon Block as one of the men in the image was difficult after hewas killed by a mortar blast on March I. HarlonBlock, seen in the photoas the figure on the farright bracing the base of‘(Harlon Block)graduated fromhigh school here,and (the photo) isarguably the bestpicture in the world.I think it was properfor the city to dothat and honor himfor the sacrifices hemade.'Joe I' Sanchez, WeslacoMayor and local historianthe flag, was originally misidentified as Marine Sgt. Henry Hansen.An endless stream of protests by fellow flag-raiser and Marine Cpl. Ira Hayes eventually led to a congressional investigation that ultimately identified Harlon Block as one of the six men in the photograph.Today, a memorial statue depicting the scene in Rosenthal’sstands in Arlington, Va., and another is closer to home on the grounds of the Marine MilitaryAcademy in Harlingen.Harlon Block’sgravesite is also on the academy grounds after his body was moved twice - once from its original burial location in lwo Jima and then again from its second resting place at the Weslaco City Cemetery upon his family’s request.On Feb. 23, 2002,Weslaco named its state-of-the-art sports complex on the city’s south side Harlon Block Park/Sports Complex in memory of arguably its most famous resident,said former WeslacoMayor and local historian Joe V. Sanchez.(Harlon Block) graduated from high school here, and (the photo) is arguably the best picture in the world,” Sanchez said. 1 think it was proper for the city to do that and honor him for the sacrifices hemade.”lUnlirDUm mjt £111rAll phones requti voice plan with e FreeBiack8errylt; 2-yr prices Ston $169.99 - $70 mlt; Pearl $119.991.8VERIZON ¥Open 1 days a
Newspaper Details
Brownsville Herald
Brownsville, Texas, US
Sun, Mar 15, 2009
Page 32
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
AU 23 Dec 2020
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