The Wheeling Military Banner Program offered a salute to Olson, who lost his life at the age of 19 while serving his country.

Olson, a member of the U.S. Marine Corps, was an anti-tank assaultman serving with Combined Action Company Program 3-3-5 just four months into his tour when he was killed on Jan. 3, 1970. Written accounts state that he was conducting a search in the Thua Thien Province in South Vietnam when two M26 grenade booby traps rigged with trip wires simultaneously detonated on his patrol. Olson was fatally wounded in the blast, and two others were wounded, according to reports.

His family was informed of his death during the days that followed. Olson’s body was returned to Wheeling and buried in Greenwood Cemetery.

John Larch, volunteer who coordinates the Military Banner Program in Wheeling, shared words from an old copy of the Wheeling News-Register that featured an interview with Olson’s mother, Ruth, about her son — a “very proud Marine.” The article noted that Olson’s many medals and a few of his possessions were returned home. It included a small wallet that contained a newspaper clipping of the famous poem “Immortality.” Larch read that poem:

Wheeling Mayor Denny Magruder, right, welcomes guests to the military banner dedication Friday in South Wheeling in honor of Lance Cpl. Charles Robert “Robbie” Olson, who was killed in action in Vietnam in 1970. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

“Do not stand at my grave and weep. I am not there. I do not sleep.

I am a thousand winds that blow. I am the diamond glints on snow.

I am the sunlight on reaped grain. I am the gentle autumn rain.

When you awake in the morning hush, I am the swift unfliging rush.

Of quiet birds in circling flight, I am the soft star-shine at night.

Dave Schoenian, president of the Moundsville Honor Guard, addresses the crowd gathered outside of Ritchie Elementary School on Friday during a military banner dedication in honor of Lance Cpl. Charles Robert “Robbie” Olson, who was killed in action in Vietnam in 1970. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

Do not stand at my grave and cry. I am not there. I did not die.”

“This is a poem that traveled from Vietnam to his mother’s home right here in Wheeling. It made it in the (newspaper) 55 years ago, and it is now being presented at his banner ceremony today,” Larch said.

Several family members attended Friday’s ceremony, which repositioned Olson’s banner from its previous location on National Road to a site in front of Ritchie Elementary School near his childhood home in South Wheeling, which once stood where the 36th Street Pool is now located.

“He grew up here,” said his sister Cheyann James. “We lived across the street. This was our school – this is where we hung out. All of his friends, everybody. We were right here all of the time.”

Siblings, cousins and other relatives were able to take part in the banner dedication for Lance Cpl. Olson. Afterward, they shared stories about his time in Wheeling before he joined the military.

“He played in a band for a little while before he went to the service,” James said. “He was a good guy. Really a good guy. He was a very compassionate, caring person. He loved his country, and he always wanted to be a Marine for as long as I can remember. That was one of his dreams – he wanted to be a Marine. That was a big thing that he wanted.”

His younger cousin, Dale Olson — a pilot and decorated Air Force veteran — performed “Taps” during Friday’s banner dedication ceremony.

“I was 11 when Robbie got killed,” Dale Olson said. “When they were talking about the notice to the family, I remember that very well.”

Dale Olson said Robbie Olson spent a lot of time in the South Wheeling neighborhood at the school, the fire department and where a number of family members resided, so they decided that it would be better to have his banner placed there.

Robbie Olson graduated Wheeling High School in 1968 and had played guitar with a band before he enlisted in the Marines in January of 1969. He went to Parris Island, S.C., for basic training.

Dale Olson, decorated U.S. Air Force veteran and cousin of Lance Cpl. Robbie Olson, performs taps on the bugle during a military banner dedication Friday in South Wheeling. Dale Olson was 11 years old when his cousin, Robbie, 19, was killed in action in Vietnam in January 1970. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

Wheeling VFW Vice Commander Chuck Ryan, also a Marine and Vietnam veteran, noted that Olson’s service in Vietnam earned him several prestigious medals, including a Purple Heart and Bronze Star.

“He was a very highly decorated Marine,” Ryan said of Olson’s noted history of service, adding that he had volunteered to be in a group that performed very dangerous duties, gathering information in often unfriendly villages in Vietnam.

Ryan also read a letter that Olson penned just weeks before his death on Dec. 16, 1969, indicating to his family that he may have been looking forward to an opportunity to return home the following April.

According to Ryan, not only do the service men and women need to be remembered, but the family members of those who have paid the ultimate price through their military service also need to be remembered.

Olson’s name is listed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall on Panel 15 West, Line 123.

Fifth grade students from Ritchie Elementary School in South Wheeling wave American flags during Friday's military banner dedication ceremony outside of the school building. The students led participants in the pledge of allegiance. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

“That is one of the most visited monuments in Washington, D.C.,” Ryan said. “He will never be forgotten. Thousands of people walk by that wall every day to look at those names.”

Fifth grade students from Ritchie Elementary School participated in Friday’s ceremony by leading the group in the Pledge of Allegiance. Members of the Moundsville Veterans Honor Guard also participated in the ceremony, performing a three-volley gun salute and offering the family a folded American flag in honor of their fallen loved one.

“When the call from our country was heard, our comrade Charles Robert Olson answered,” said Dave Schoenian, president of the Moundsville Veterans Honor Guard. “Self was forgotten for the cause of the greater good.”

Started just last year, the Military Banner Program in Wheeling has erected more than 250 banners throughout the city, honoring veterans and active duty military personnel, both peace time and war time.

“This is fantastic,” James said of the banner program that honors her brother and many other patriots. “This is just absolutely awesome. I just want to thank everybody for this wonderful program.”

For more information on the Military Banner Program in Wheeling, visit www.troopbanners.com/wheeling.

A military banner is displayed on Wood Street in South Wheeling near Ritchie Elementary School in honor of Lance Cpl. Charles Robert “Robbie” Olson, who was killed in action at the age of 19 while serving his country in Vietnam in 1970. Olson's family home in his youth once stood across the street where the 36th Street Pool is located today. (Photo by Eric Ayres)