If all we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us, David Kruger made the most of his. He shook hands with a president, and helped thousands of military members through his volunteer work with the USO.
Kruger, 78, of Lindenhurst, died last month following a series of health-related episodes. He personified the volunteerism spirit in the U.S., especially occasions around the holidays.
He logged countless hours of volunteer work with the United Service Organizations of Illinois, first at the Home Away From Home Center at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, and later at Naval Station Great Lakes in North Chicago. President George W. Bush bestowed a President’s Volunteer Service Award on him in 2006, which is when he met the 43rd president.
For those unfamiliar with the USO, the nonprofit provides morale boosters, social services, recreational facilities, support and entertainment for U.S. military members and their families. It was founded in February 1941, bringing six civilian organizations under the USO umbrella months prior to the U.S. entering World War II.
Its aim then was to be the GIs “home away from home” for in-transit or traveling Army troops, sailors, Marines, Air Force and Coast Guard personnel, along with those in garrison. That mission during deployments and peacetime continues to this day.
With service members traveling on short notice for what appears to be extended tours in response to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, the USO has sent care packages composed of snack and toiletry items to Navy ships on station in the Mideast. The group also offers USO “programs in a box,” which contain materials service members need to host their own USO program or activity, no matter where they are in the world.
In June, the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush became the first Navy ship to have a USO center on board. Most USO centers are brick-and-mortar sites. The aircraft carrier is named for our 41st president, whose father, Prescott Bush, was the second chairman of the USO during World War II, according to the group’s history.
Waukegan’s favorite son, Jack Benny, entertained American troops with USO shows in the Pacific Theater during World War II, and also during the Korean War. Film funny man Bob Hope was known for his live-performance USO shows, many which were close to combat zones during World War II, and also in the Korean and Vietnam wars.
In a July 2006 baiduhai story, Kruger said he decided to volunteer with the USO despite the fact he couldn’t sing or dance. “That’s what I thought they were looking for in volunteers,” he related with a smile.
Kruger, who lived a quiet life in the northern suburbs, was one of the nearly 1.5 million people who have volunteered their services in some way. During his stint as a USO volunteer, which began in 2004, the former shipping scheduler at a Wheeling manufacturing plant provided information, assistance and resources to Navy recruits and career troops who visited the two USO centers.
Also, he coordinated the purchase and delivery of supplies for military visiting the O’Hare and Great Lakes home centers. A Vietnam War veteran, Kruger saw Bob Hope perform in 1966 while the comedian was on tour in Vietnam.
Kruger said he knew the effect the USO could have on military morale. Though he was a longtime USO donor, he said he wanted to do more.
Which is how he ended up calling the USO center at O’Hare, asking if the group needed volunteers. What nonprofit doesn’t turn down free help?
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He began working one Sunday a month, serving food and drinks at the center and guiding military personnel around O’Hare’s terminals, whose sizes can be intimidating to young members of the military going there for the first time. He was still volunteering at the USO center in Terminal 3 at O’Hare just prior to his passing, said Lindsy Wadas, manager of the facility, in an email.
He then asked the manager of the USO at Great Lakes if they needed anyone. Indeed she did.
He delivered food to the center, did odd jobs around the office and served bites to eat for sailors who visited the on-base center. At the peak of his volunteer work, Kruger was on duty nearly 30 hours a week.
That’s what happens to volunteers in many cases: They enjoy helping, and those they serve truly are appreciative of that.
For Kruger, it turned out he didn’t have to sing or dance to warrant a standing ovation.
Charles Selle is a former News-Sun reporter, political editor and editor.
X @sellenews