A series of walking tour historical kiosks are in the works for Montgomery. The first was unveiled in Montgomery on Sunday, June 19. The ceremony was both a celebration and a solemn remembrance of Lt. Delmar Decker, a Montgomery native who made the ultimate sacrifice in World War II as a navigator on B-17 Flying Fortress named the San Antonio Rose.

The event was attended by members of the Montgomery Area Historical Society and people from the community. Three very special guests were also present: Lynn Matrisian, Paula McCormick, and Brett McCormick, who are the nieces and nephew of Lt. Decker. Their mother was the late Marion McCormick, a dedicated member of the Montgomery Area Historical Society. Marion was also Delmar Decker’s younger sister.

A speech was given by Mark Shifflet, president of the Montgomery Area Historical Society. He thanked many people involved with making the kiosk possible. The walking tour is a joint project of the historical society as well the high school’s history club. He spoke about the life and the service of Lt. Decker before removing a red cloth, unveiling the kiosk featuring the story of Lt. Decker, the San Antonio Rose, and six photos.

The kiosk was placed in front of the existing San Antonio Rose monument that was built by Chris Miller a few years ago for The Lycoming County Veteran’s Day Parade. Afterwards it was placed in the Memorial Garden. It is a smaller model of the memorial that was built in Zegveld, Holland, where the plane went down.

According to the kiosk, the San Antonio Rose was part of the 95th Bomb Group, 336th Squadron. Lt. Decker died onboard when the plane was shot down while on a bombing mission. All but four of the crew members died.

In 2015, residents of Zegveld, Holland constructed a monument to honor the crewmen of the San Antonio Rose and invited the family members to attend the ceremony. It was attended by Marion McCormick, her three children, and their spouses.

Lt. Decker wasn’t the only member of his family to serve in World War II. His three brothers, Paul Jr., Roland, and Aaron also fought in World War II. Tragically, only two of the four brothers survived the war. Lt. Aaron Decker sacrificed his life in North Africa while serving in the army.

After the war, both of the fallen Decker brothers remains were returned home and buried in the family plot in Fairview Cemetery, Montgomery.

Today the citizens of Montgomery can honor the legacy of Lt. Delmar Decker and the San Antonio Rose by visiting the monument, which is surrounded by red and white flowers. The kiosk is near the very center of Montgomery, the town that the Decker family was very instrumental in founding.

Lt. Aaron Decker’s memory has been memorialized with the name of the American Legion Bower-Decker Post #251.