EDDIE NOKES MILITARY FUNERAL, MARCH 11, 2019
By Don Henderson 3/11/19
March 11, 2019, my wife and I attended a moving military funeral for my friend, Eddie Nokes. Pat and I spent the night in Ennis so we would have ample time to find the location, The National Cemetery in Dallas/Ft. Worth. I had planned to take pictures, but when the ceremony began, it was obvious to me that taking pictures would be undignified for this solemn occasion. We were in line by the designated time of 9:45 AM, lined up in our car, along with a large company of friends and relatives there to celebrate Eddie’s life and interment. The service was indeed a touching military final tribute for Eddie. Two young Marines held a folded U.S. flag and with regimented steps unfolded it and stretched it out, displaying for all. I probably have the sequence wrong, but the next things I remember is a beautiful version of taps being played by another Marine. Next the two marines with great dignity and honor of the flag, re-folded it, step by step into the original triangular shape. Everything was done with dignity and reverence and finally after exact military preciseness, the folded flag was awarded to Eddie’s wife Velma. Next, one of Eddie’s former ministers from Sherman, Texas said a few words, describing how he on several occasions walked to a baseball field in Sherman and joined Eddie to watch a baseball game. He described Eddie as the ultimate announcer of the game, indicating what was going to happen before it happened and describing every detail in advance. He concluded with Jesus’s words in John 4:1-3: “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” A very moving ceremony for very deserving Marine.
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