Late WWII veteran honored in flag-folding ceremony 40 years later




Patti Hewitt, American Legion Post #436 Advocate Judge, presents a folded US flag to Marcella Dornak, wife of the late World War II veteran Jerome Dornak who passed away in November 1980, and his daughter Denise McAskill (in sunglasses) during a special flag-folding ceremony on May 20. LISA LUNA | PLEASANTON EXPRESS

Patti Hewitt, American Legion Post #436 Advocate Judge, presents a folded US flag to Marcella Dornak, wife of the late World War II veteran Jerome Dornak who passed away in November 1980, and his daughter Denise McAskill (in sunglasses) during a special flag-folding ceremony on May 20. LISA LUNA | PLEASANTON EXPRESS

A Jourdanton native, Jerome Dornak was a Master Sergeant in the US Army during World War II. He passed away in November 1980 at the age of 62 due to complications following heart surgery. As with any fallen soldier or veteran, the spouse or family members are presented with a folded US flag that is typically displayed in their home to remember their hero. However, Dornak’s daughter, Denise McAskill, couldn’t remember if her mother was ever presented with one at his funeral.

“I knew I hadn’t ever seen one in her house,” said McAskill, who learned that her father’s flag had been stored in a cedar chest for the past 40 years. “It was no longer nicely folded because [Mom] had taken it out and unfolded it some years ago as she thought she might be able to fly it at her house. She realized, however, that it was larger than she had thought … she folded it back up as best she could and returned it to the cedar chest. We looked at it together and my wheels started turning.”

Master Sgt. Jerome Dornak

Master Sgt. Jerome Dornak

McAskill and her siblings purchased a personalized flag display case as a Mother’s Day gift for their mom who loved it but wondered who she might get to fold the flag for her. That’s when the second half of the gift was revealed.

On May 20, a flag-folding ceremony was held for the late WWII veteran hosted and performed by the American Legion Post #436 in Jourdanton.

“We were very glad to perform the ceremony for them. That’s our motto: to exhibit and promote patriotism for our fellow veterans. Especially for our World War II vets since there aren’t as many left. We cannot forget that they fought for us,” said Becky Mueller, Second Vice Commander of Post #436. Mueller, who is married to one of the Dornaks’ cousins, said the ceremony was a first for the Post and they will gladly offer this service to anyone in the future.

The ceremony was led by Patti Hewitt, Judge Advocate for the Post. Military Taps was played in the back-ground as Hewitt, Mueller and Caroline George (Post Adjutant) folded the flag. There are 13 different folds in the flag-folding ceremony and each fold symbolizes a special meaning. Post Commander Willie Leal Jr. read the meaning as each fold took place. Please see graphic within this story.

A flag-folding ceremony was held for the late Jerome Dornak, a WWII veteran who passed away in 1980 at the age of 62. Among those attending the event at the American Legion Post in Jourdanton were Dornak family members and officers of the American Legion. From left are, front row: William Waymire (Sergeant-At-Arms), Caroline George (Adjutant), Patti Hewitt (Judge Advocate), Marcella Dornak, Willie Leal Jr. (Commander), Becky Mueller (Second Vice Commander), Paul Dornak and Sherry Dornak; back row: Carolyn Dornak, Mike McAskill, Denise McAskill and Cregg Thompson (First Vice Commander). LISA LUNA | PLEASANTON EXPRESS

A flag-folding ceremony was held for the late Jerome Dornak, a WWII veteran who passed away in 1980 at the age of 62. Among those attending the event at the American Legion Post in Jourdanton were Dornak family members and officers of the American Legion. From left are, front row: William Waymire (Sergeant-At-Arms), Caroline George (Adjutant), Patti Hewitt (Judge Advocate), Marcella Dornak, Willie Leal Jr. (Commander), Becky Mueller (Second Vice Commander), Paul Dornak and Sherry Dornak; back row: Carolyn Dornak, Mike McAskill, Denise McAskill and Cregg Thompson (First Vice Commander). LISA LUNA | PLEASANTON EXPRESS

“Being that I took part in the actual flag folding, it was hard to hold myself together. It was so emotional and inspirational … our World War II vets are not forgotten. They were instrumental in creating our history. I’m glad to have taken part in this special ceremony,” said Mueller.

When the ceremony was complete, Hewitt presented the folded flag to Dornak’s wife, Marcella. The flag is now proudly displayed in her living room.

“I mean, it just was perfect. It was really perfect to have that. And when they folded it … it’s such a solemn ceremony, if you’ve ever seen it at a funeral, when they take the flag off of the casket and they fold it and then they present it to the surviving spouse or their family,” said McAskill, who said it’s been a long time since her family has done anything in memory of her dad. “And so that’s very special to me, too, because you know, you never forget them. And of course, you think about them every holiday and every birthday and all those things and every time in between. But for us, too, as a family, even though everybody couldn’t be in attendance, we still decided as a family to do this for my mom in honor of dad.”

13 Folds of the US Flag

13 Folds of the US Flag

After his time in the service, Dornak became a self-employed carpenter and handyman. He married Marcella in 1948 and the two had nine children together, including McAskill. Three of Dornak’s sons, Jerry, Paul and Tim, followed in his footsteps by serving in the military. Jerry was an Army Reserve at Texas A&M, Paul was in the Marines and Tim, the youngest, was also in the Army.

Following the ceremony on May 20, McAskill and her family made a donation to the American Legion Post #436 as a special thank you for the ceremony.

“That made us feel really good, too, because they really went above and beyond anything I would have imagined. So, we thought it was the least that we could do as a family,” said McAskill. “Just to be able to do this for her, for my mom, it was just very special.”

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