Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Those that knewJoe Zikewich lost a true friend, consummate fisherman, and devoted patriot

The V.F.W. hall in Oxford held an overflowing crowd showing their respects to the man nicknamed Ice Flow Joe.
Joe got the moniker from the many times he had been rescued by helicopter from ice floes on Lake St. Clair that had broken loosed and were headed downstream to Toledo.
Proud of his country and his service during WWII aboard the USS Lexington, Joe often talked about the war and the time a Japanese Kamikaze struck the ships flight deck killing 43 and injuring 237. "There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think of those guys," Zikewich used to say. In their memory, he always wore a piece of shrapnel from the plane that crashed into the ship.
If you're ever in Lake Orion, take a couple of minutes and visit the memorial to service personnel on M-24. There you will find the "Peacoat Memorial," a vision Zikewich had to remember those lost not only on the Lexington but in their service to the country.

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