Janet Ulbrich holds a photograph of her uncle, U.S. Army Sgt. Harold W. TeVoert, with her daughter, Karen Ulbrich and Bloomington (IL) Mayor Dan Brady at American Gold Star Families’ Fallen Heroes Tree of Honor Tree Lighting Ceremony.
251117-A-OH563-4063.JPG Photo By: Lt. Col. Bradford Leighton

Bloomington, Ill. - Janet Ulbrich holds a photograph of her uncle, U.S. Army Sgt. Harold W. TeVoert, with her daughter, Karen Ulbrich and Bloomington (IL) Mayor Dan Brady at American Gold Star Families’ Fallen Heroes Tree of Honor Tree Lighting Ceremony on Monday, Nov. 17, at Central Illinois Regional Airport in Bloomington, Illinois. Sgt. TeVoert was killed in action in Belgium during the World War II Battle of the Bulge. Before the war, Sgt. TeVoert worked at St. Joseph's Hospital in Bloomington with Janet's father, Jim Ulbrich. Brig. Gen. Lenny Williams, the Assistant Adjutant General – Army of the Illinois National Guard and the Commander of the Illinois Army National Guard, served as the speaker during the annual ceremony where Gold Star Families place ornaments on the Christmas Tree with the names of their fallen heroes. “I am here today proudly representing my organization, the U.S. Army, our nation, this uniform and all that it stands for, and the oath that we all took to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies. My support to this event this evening and other events like it, is more than just my duty as an Army officer – it is personal,” Williams said. “You see, for me personally, September 17, October 27, and February 24 will always be etched in my mind. As a company commander in Afghanistan, those are the days we lost four incredible Soldiers from our unit. Each year those are days of reflection for the amazing Soldiers that we lost, and of the incredible Gold Star Families that they came from. The other speaker was Miss. Kankakee Teen 2025 and Eagle Scout, Alexis McCullough, whose father, Army Col. Mark R. McCullough, died while serving his nation on Oct. 16, 2019.


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