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Wager honors veterans with Jeep display


Vietnam War veteran Joyce Wager of Mobridge honors veterans at his 12th Street East home with his monument to their service.

Tractors, trucks, cars, windmills, Joyce Wager had seen lawn ornaments of many kinds, but he had never seen one that honored members of the military. So, he decided to change that by turning an old jeep into a lawn ornament.
“I’m kind of a patriotic veteran and I see a lot of lawn ornaments around the country, you know old trucks, cars and I thought that maybe the veterans should maybe have something is why I went that way,” said Wager.
Wager’s time of service came during the Vietnam War.
“I was in the Army and I went to Fort Leonard Wood for basic, Aberdeen, Maryland, to school, Aberdeen, Maryland to Vietnam and Vietnam to Fort Hood, Texas. So, I’ve seen a lot of country,” Wager said.
Aberdeen Proving Ground was where Wager trained to be a mechanic for the Army. When the Army learned he had experience driving larger vehicles, they had doing convoys. Sometimes he was tasked with driving around important people, such as high-ranking officers.
“I went over as a mechanic, ended up running convoys because they found out the ol’ farm boy could drive trucks, you know? And then from a lot of convoys, back to mechanic and then they decided I was supposed to drive the old man around every once in a while and that’s where the jeep come in,” Wager said. “I drove the commander and all the officers under him if they had to go someplace, that’s what I’d done was drive ‘em. That’s why my jeep deal came out. That was something from the past and something from the future.”
The jeep is similar to what Wager drove in the Army, but it’s a little newer model and he found it in a junkyard and fixed it up, working off and on over the course of six months. Part of that was due to the difficulty in finding the right parts for the jeep.
“You can’t find that stuff anymore, you know? What I did is found some old Ford rims and cut the center out and put them on there,” Wager said.
Wager did other cosmetic updates to the vehicle, like putting in seat covers, adding decals and painting it in order to give it a military look.
“Painting it, that was pretty simple. Used the paint brush and the roller. Because that’s what we did in the service. When I was in the service we went around and painted all the spots on outfits that was chipped off and we used a brush. So, I said, ‘Well if that’s good enough then, it is now,’” Wager said.
There’s a motor in the vehicle, but Wager doesn’t drive it. When he wants to move it, he makes use of his tractor loader. During the winter he tries to brush the snow off, but if it gets too deep, the snow stays there until it melts in the spring.
Wager is a modest man, he’s pleased with his display but is not one to boast about it, but when he talks about the military, the pride in his voice is palpable. Wager is proud to have served, absolutely, but his pride is also for the men he served alongside, the men who shed their blood in service of their country, the men who made the ultimate sacrifice.
“A lot of people gave their life for our liberty and I just wanted to recognize them. They played a big role in this country. And I believe more people should think about them. What they gave, their sacrifices were great. That’s about the only reason I’d done it,” Wager said.
His granddaughter provided a sign for the display and he made a holder for the sign.
“Just to show my respects, more or less, is why I done it. Not trying to be a showoff or anything, but I think it looks rather nice, myself. I know I’ve had a ton of compliments on it.”
Those compliments came from members of the American Legion as well as members of the public.
“The commander of the legion said, ‘That was one fine thing you done, Joyce.’ And I said, ‘Oh, well thank you.’ And a lot of other ones that belong to the Legion have given me compliments. Tons of civilians come by and honk their horns, put their thumb up if I’m out there. Makes you feel good.” Wager said.
He made a lot of friends during his time in the service and those brothers in arms still living expressed their appreciation of Wager’s efforts.
“The ones that are still around thought that was great. And I presume the ones that ain’t around would have thought so too. I’m just kind of honored to get recognized,” Wager said.
One of the reasons he put together the display was to honor veterans of the Vietnam War, those who perished in the conflict and those who made it back home to a chillier reception than the one enjoyed by veterans of the Second World War.
“I know how we got treated when we came home. And it never leaves your mind, I’ll tell you that. It was very disgraceful, it was. But that was then and this is now,” Wager said. “Korean War, I think they got recognized a little more but not a lot either, you know? And I don’t think it was right, but you can’t change it, so that’s the way it is.”
He hangs a P.O.W. flag on the back of the jeep and replaces it when he needs to.
“I call it kind of a memorial. I don’t think you decorate memorials up,” Wager said

2 responses to “Wager honors veterans with Jeep display”

  1. MikeOtterberg says:

    Great story Joyce, thank you for your service!!

  2. Patti Pathmann Nauman says:

    Great article, thank you for your service, Joyce. The Jeep is a great memorial to those lost and the ones who came home…love it!

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