HOMEWOOD, Ill. (WLS) — There was a special honor Thursday for a World War II veteran who died alone during Chicago’s 1995 heat wave.
That disaster claimed more than 700 lives.
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Emilio Agguire was remembered in Homewood.
Aguirre enlisted in the Army in March of 1943, and was shipped off to Europe to fight the Nazis in Italy.
In the subsequent year, the rifleman was captured by German forces and held as a prisoner of war until the conflict concluded. Upon returning to Chicago, he found work as a railroad laborer and was later honored with the Bronze Star for his bravery.
But, during the deadly heat wave of 1995, he died alone in his apartment.
On Thursday, at Homewood Memorial Gardens, the Chicago Department of Veterans Affairs collaborated with local veterans organizations to pay tribute to Aguirre, marking exactly 30 years since his death.
Retired U.S. Army Capt. Monika Stoy reflected, “He endured the horrors of World War II and a POW camp, only to succumb to a heat wave in Chicago in July 1995.”
Eric Klinenberg authored the book “Heat Wave: A Social Autopsy of Disaster in Chicago,” and was the person who uncovered the archived artifacts that police had recovered from Aguirre’s home.
“I think we learned in 1995 that there are hundreds of thousands of people who are old and alone on their own in residential units that we just don’t pay much attention to,” Klinenberg said. “They’re there all the time. It just became especially deadly in the heat wave.”
Charles Henderson, an Afghan veteran and Harold Washington VFW historian said in Spanish, “Emilio, your people are with you. Yes, you can.”
After Army veteran Henderson learned about Aguirre, he began a five-year mission that uncovered the details of Aguirre’s service, that he was born in Mexico and only became a U.S. citizen after World War II.
“Thank you, Emilio, my elder, you taught me things even in death. In the great sports film of ‘Field of Dreams,’ there was a voice that says, ‘ease his pain.’ Emilio, I hope I eased your pain,” Henderson said.
Aguirre was originally buried in a trench along with dozens of other unclaimed bodies: anonymous victims honored together with a memorial marker.
With no living family members, Aguirre, who was just shy of 82, was among those laid to rest in the potter’s field.
Elaine Egdorf, the former president of the Homewood Historical Society, was there that day, and came back for Thursday’s ceremony.
“I’m wiping my eyes. I just think it’s remarkable what all these people gathered together to do, and the history of this man, just incredible,” Egdorf said.
Veterans, city leaders and others gathered Thursday at the cemetery to give Aguirre the honor he deserved three decades later.
An honor guard provided Henderson an American flag to recognize his work.
“It meant a lot because, it’s just finally, finally Emilio, you got what you deserved,” Henderson said.
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