Coast Guard Honors Longtime Auxiliary Member

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210924coastguardtribute0031

The U.S. Coast Guard this past weekend paid tribute to a longtime Auxiliary member who died last year. Ben Plachta died at the age of 81 in August of 2020. He served the Coast Guard Auxiliary since 1972. The guard planed a memorial wreath in the Black River in South Haven to honor him on Saturday. The Coast Guard first held a memorial ceremony at the Northside marina where the Auxiliary is stationed. Attending were family, friends, Auxiliary and Coast Guard representatives. Bagpipers led a procession to the Coast Guard vessel, which took the wreath to the water. South Haven Area Emergency Services joined in the tribute. The Coast Guard boat out of St. Joseph navigated six-foot waves on Lake Michigan to get to South Haven for the ceremony.