FORT JENNINGS — The blasts of the cannon obliterated the quiet serenity of the camp, causing the birds in the surrounding trees to hastily take to the air in retreat. The smoke from the cannon and musket fire mingled in the air with the smoke of the campfires heating supper.
This was the scene at a War of 1812 camp reenactment in Fort Jennings Park Saturday at FortFest, a yearly celebration of the community’s military heritage. Not far from this camp was a recreation of an encampment from the Vietnam War, with attendees even able to take a ride in a Huey 369 helicopter. Not far away, some of the latest military transportation vehicles were on display, encompassing nearly the entire history of the military.
“It’s all about the history,” according to Julie Wiley, who organized the War of 1812 camp. “This was a fairly substantial fort during the war.”
The camp, now in its fourth year, gives the opportunity for children and adults to learn both about soldiers and the natives who also lived in the area over 200 years ago.
“If you go into the Fort Jennings schools and ask kids what they know about the fort, a lot would raise their hands and tell you all about it,” Wiley said.
While honoring the soldiers of the past, FortFest also took aims to honor and support today’s military through a presentation from Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), an office of the U.S. Department of Defense that helps establish relationships between reservists and civilian employers.
“We had a massive signing of a statement of support by employers in Putnam County and northwest Ohio,” ESGR military outreach supporter Paul Joseph said. “It gives our communities the chance to give back and pay recognition to our Armed Forces’ volunteers.”
Maj. Gen. Mark Bartman, adjutant general for the Ohio National Guard, spoke during the event, emphasizing the need for employer support for those in the National Guard and Reserves.
“If our members in the Reserve and the guard are going to be deployed, they need the support of their employers to do that,” he said. “Out of the 16,000 (reservists) that I have working for me, a little more than two-thirds are what we call traditional members of the Guard, meaning they have other jobs than what their military job is.”
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