Veterans honored with memorial reading
The Jan. 11 event acknowledged the service of local military personnel who died between April and September of 2024.

Donna George displays the commemorative plaque provided by the local chapter of the DAR, for her late husband and Army veteran, Rodney George, who was one of the local veterans honored at the Winter Memorial Reading held Jan .11, 2025. [Photo by Andy Fillmore]
The Winter Memorial Reading held Jan. 11 at the Marion County Commissioners Auditorium honored Marion County veterans who honorably served and passed away between April and September of 2024. The group included a World War II veteran who led a squad that liberated a Nazi work camp and a former Marion County Commissioner.
Robert B. Anderson, 99, was the first American soldier to enter as his squad liberated Das K-2 Lager Kaufering III, a Nazi work camp tied to Dachau Prison, according to his son, Richard Anderson.

Robert B. Anderson was a World War II veteran who led a squad that liberated a Nazi work camp. This photo is from 1946, according to his son, Richard. [Photo courtesy Richard Anderson]
He was on the front lines through April of 1945, according to an email from his son.
Anderson was the recipient of a Bronze Star for risking his life to save a fellow soldier, the Purple Heart for combat wounds and the French Legion of Honor, according to the email. In civilian life, he worked in the dairy and optical trades.
“The memorial touched my heart and was another opportunity to honor my father and be in awe of his service,” Richard Anderson said.
Roy Abshier, former Belleview mayor and Marion County Commissioner, passed away July 7, 2024, at age 86. He was honored as a U.S. Marine Corps veteran.
Ralph Mueller, served in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War and was a regular presence at the Ocala-Marion County Veterans Memorial Park. Muller died on Nov. 22, 2024, at age 91. He was affectionately known for his harmonica playing.
The quarterly memorial is a joint project of Marion County Veterans Services, the Ocala Chapter of National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Children of the American Revolution Ocali Chapter the Friends of Marion County Veterans Park, the Marion County Veterans Council and Empath Hospice of Marion County.
Retired U.S. Navy Senior Chief Don Kennedy noted in his keynote address: “Today we honor our veterans, not just for their service, but for the sacrifices, they and their families, endure.”
He also said, “Time away from home stretches endlessly and many family milestones are missed” and talked about the “profound emotions” of homecoming.
Marine Corps veteran David Bice rang a bell as each veteran’s name was announced. Marion County Veterans Service Office Director Jeffrey Askew was on hand to help host the event.
Donna George lost her husband, Rodney, 78, on July 25, 2024. He was a Vietnam War veteran who served as a medic and made the Army his career.
“The memorial meant a lot,” she said.
Army veteran Robert Lee Hyder, 74, a resident of Umatilla, passed away on Aug. 14, 2024. Hyder served as a medic during the Vietnam War. He went on to serve for more than three decades in the HVAC and refrigeration trade. He was known to put others first and was quick to offer help, according to a family friend at the memorial. Hyder is survived by his wife of 53 years, Carolyn, along with two daughters, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
James Colvin, 89, a U.S. Air Force veteran, died on Sept. 29, 2024. He had decades of service with the Air Force and served during the Korean War and Vietnam War. His widow, Diana Colvin, attended the memorial.
Family members were welcome to take a small commemorative plaque honoring each service member, provided by the local DAR. The plaque could be kept by the family or be placed on the Wall of Heroes in the Veteran Education Center adjacent to the Ocala-Marion County Veterans Memorial Park, according to the memorial program.
Betty Hanlon attended to honor her husband, Rodger Hanlon, an Air Force flight mechanic who passed away at age 84.
“It meant a lot to him to be in the military and he was very proud of being in the Air Force,” she said.
Susan Hanlon, the couple’s daughter, who was born when the family was stationed in Okinawa, attended the memorial.
“I’m proud of my dad,” she said.
To learn more, go to marionfl.org/agencies-departments/departments-facilities-offices/veterans-services
VETERANS WHO WERE HONORED
U.S. ARMY
Robert B. Anderson
Robert Branch
Daniel P. Clifford
Edwin C. Cluster
Richard J. Cody
Robert W. Daughtry
Herbert L. Dillard, Sr.
Allen Edie
Louis Fossaceca*
Kevin L. Geathers
John Geer
Rodney George
Nathan C. Gilman
John Gingery
George E. Gould
Gertrude E. Hutter
Irving Isicoff
John Kilnesmith
Kirby W. Manning
John Morrison Jr.
Joe W. Norris
Joseph B. Parker
Russel E. Poehlman
Charles Rhodes
Karl E. Richmond
Daniel Robin
Homer M. “Fuzz” Rothfusz
James Stanislawski
Norman E. Thibodeau
Alfred Weiss
U.S. ARMY AIR CORPS
Donald C. Lindsey
U.S. NAVY
Richard G. “Rick” Ashman
Gerald Buscemi
Aubrey B. Campbell
Thomas A. Cambre
Joseph Carlucci
Charles Cirolo
Gary Cook
Sherry Creech
Vincent De Ceasare
Morris C. Foreman
John Horstman
Walter William Lane
Alfred L. Merrill
James P. Moellentine
Joseph E. O’Brien
Nelson Prentice
Leroy Thompson
Washburn W. “Tre” Wear III
U.S. MARINE CORPS
Roy E. Abshier
Charles Barrack Sr.
David Boncosky
Gary Bruso
Hubert L. Johnson Jr.
James Snelling
William L. “Bill” Steigner
U.S. AIR FORCE
Robert L. Bee
James Colvin
Louis Fossaceca*
Rodger Hanlon
Robert Hollingsworth