2018 has been a year of opportunities and challenges for the Eldred Township Veterans Commission.

The group undertook a restoration project to clean up the area around the veterans memorial, located outside the Eldred Township municipal building/post office.

It also lost three of its dedicated members.

Those members were remembered as residents gathered on Monday to honor Eldred natives who gave their lives while serving their country.

Residents gathered at the township’s veterans memorial Monday morning for the annual tradition.

Led by Rosie Carrillo, a cadet in the ROTC program at East Stroudsburg University, the group sang patriotic songs to recognize the soldiers’ sacrifice.

Janet Smith read “In Flanders Field” and led the group in a Memorial Day litany.

Debra Schuler read the poem “Freedom Is Not Free,” reminding the crowd of what soldiers give up each day in the defense of freedom.

Shirley Krum spoke about the Vietnam War, and the 58,000 American soldiers who died in it. She highlighted the soldiers who served admirably despite disagreeing with the reasons for the conflict. She asked the crowd to think of them, especially those who continue to deal with the effects of Agent Orange.

“To me, the military won the war,” she said. “The politicians lost it.”

Marlene Prutzman took time to remember each of the town’s five gold star veterans — those who died serving their country. The list included her brother, Elton Christman, a captain who was killed by a sniper during the Korean War.

Archie Craig, an E-5 in the Army, honored the members of the Veterans Commission who were lost in 2018. Leon Smale, who died in February, was regarded as the mayor of Kunkletown, a position which technically does not exist. He would raise the flag over the memorial each day.

In March, the designer of the memorial, Elmer Frantz, also passed away. He was followed by Helen Mackes, a longtime volunteer and tax collector in the township.

Frantz’s daughter, Diann Bittenbender, was on hand to present her father’s memorial flag to the Veterans Commission.

“They were a close-knit group,” she said.