PITTSBURG, Kan. — Sometimes, it is the small things that matter most.

A few months ago, a man approached staff members from Memorial Auditorium inquiring about a small tree on the north lawn that had died several months earlier. The man, introducing himself as Kendall Wooten, walked over to the spot with staff member Jeff Martin and relayed the story behind the tree.

“Honestly,” said Martin, “I didn't know much about it other than it had been removed. There was a memorial marker near where the tree had stood.”

The tree was a “Freedom Tree” planted in honor of American soldiers listed as Prisoners of War or Missing in Action and was dedicated specifically to Colonel William H. Nelson, United States Air Force, who was shot down over Vietnam on July 20, 1966.

Col. Nelson was a Michigan native, born on September 24, 1917, in Filion, Mich. In 1966, he was re-assigned to the 355th Tactical Fighter Wing of the 7h Air Force in Thailand from McConnel Air Force Base in Wichita, leaving behind a wife and young son.

Serving as a flight leader flying F-105D fighter-bombers, Col. Nelson was awarded three Distinguished Flying Crosses and a Silver Star for gallantry and heroism while engaged in aerial combat in and around Hanoi, all between May 8 and July 7, 1966.

On July 20, 1966, while leading a strike against an enemy convoy, Col. Nelson lined up for a strafing run along Highway 12 near Hoa Binh. His aircraft never pulled out of its dive, and no ejection seat was activated. It was assumed his aircraft was hit by ground fire, and the resulting crash was ruled unsurvivable.

According to Vietnamese records, Col. Nelson was buried by local villagers near the crash site and his grave was attended to regularly. In 1977, the Vietnamese government located the grave, positively identified the remains and returned them to the United States on October 25, 1977.

Today, Col. Nelson’s son is an optometrist in Wichita, according to Wooten. He occasionally travels to Pittsburg to visit the tree and the marker.

“As we stood there talking,” Martin said, “we noticed that not only had the tree died, but the marker had significant damage — probably from a lawn mower strike. I assured him that I would check into it, and we would see if we could restore the memorial.”

True to his word, Martin brought the memorial up at the next staff meeting where everyone agreed something needed to be done, especially since the facility is “Memorial” Auditorium.

Getting the memorial repaired was not feasible and the staff was advised that the best course of action was to replace it with a new, fully engraved marker, which would take months to complete.

As it turned out, the timing all worked out.

"A few weeks ago we were able to pick up the completed memorial,” Martin said. “This was just in time for a late springtime tree planting. So, we went to In The Garden, and with their guidance, picked a nice tree that is native to Kansas.”

The staff chose a Shumard Oak (a member of the red oak family) that should grow for many years to come. They typically reach 50 feet tall with a 50-foot canopy and usually show bright red leaves in the Fall.

The staff completed the installation of the replacement memorial on Friday.

“We sent details and photos to Kendall,” Martin reported. “I have kept him updated on our progress throughout this project. He has been very kind and understanding of the timing and appreciative of the effort that we have put into this project. He will be very excited that this has been completed. This memorial should last for many years to come.”

Martin added that sometimes it’s nice to her about the quiet little wins that go unnoticed by most, especially when we are often surrounded by bad news.

“It’s these small things around town that remind me sometimes things that may seem trivial to us are sometimes very important to others,” Martin said.