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Solider from Rhinelander takes part in Carter’s funeral, Trump’s inauguration

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A former Hodag found himself in the international spotlight recently.

Twenty-one-year-old Arik Beske is a Rhinelander High School graduate and a member of the U.S. Army’s Old Guard in Washington, DC.

Earlier this month, he had the honor of keeping watch over former President Jimmy Carter’s casket while his body lay in state at the U.S. Capitol, part of his six-day funeral. He also marched at Donald Trump’s inauguration Jan. 20.

While his parents, Jon and Bethany Beske, who work in the Rhinelander School District, are proud, they’re not surprised.

"He always wanted to be in the military," his father Jon said. "When he was in probably fifth or sixth grade, he's like, 'I'm going to be in the Army.' And he stuck with it, and it got to the point where he was like, 'I don't know if I want to do anything else, so I'm going to join the Army.'"

When he turned 18, he did just that and left for boot camp at Fort Benning (now called Fort Moore) in Georgia almost immediately after high school graduation in June 2022.

After "turning green" or completing basic training, Jon said Arik wanted to be airborne and then go to ranger school after that, but he "fit the build" for The Old Guard, which is in DC.

“They said, ‘No, you’re going to go do Old Guard, which is basically, you’re part of the funerals and ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery,” Jon said.

Now based at Fort Myer, Arik has been a part of historical events.

Last year, he was on the 21-gun salute squad at the funeral of Arthur J. Gregg, the first African American lieutenant general buried at Arlington. But Carter’s funeral was his first huge, internationally watched event.

“With President Carter, we’ve just been waiting. He had been in hospice ever since Arik got to DC. Every time he came home on leave, we were always wondering if he would get called back,” Jon said.

That day came this past winter break after Carter passed away on Dec. 29, 2024, at the age of 100. Arik was in Rhinelander at the time. “He got called back at Christmas, but we had him for a week and a half before he had to return,” Jon said.

When Jon asked his son why the Army picked him as one of The Old Guard members to stand beside Carter’s casket while the public paid respects, he said, “We’ve been here the longest, and we know what we’re doing.”

Overall, Jon said Arik downplays the whole thing. "From his perspective, he's just doing his job,” he said. “But hearing the support of all the people here, throughout the school district and everybody who found out, saying, 'that's a huge deal and honor'... we're just really proud of him."

Once soldiers moved Carter's body from the Capitol to the cathedral, Arik had a day and a half off before beginning preparations for Donald Trump's inauguration, where he planned to march along with the rest of Fort Myer.

Accomplishments aside, Jon said Arik's still a small-town kid who always looks forward to coming home.

"When he comes home, it's visiting friends, visiting with us and my folks, who live in town, too," Jon said. "It's a decompression kind of thing. He wants to go to Culver's because they don't have a Culver's in DC. He wants me to make him pizza; he wants to sit around a campfire and smoke cigars."

Jon credits Arik's upbringing, specifically the coaches and teachers he had in Rhinelander, for his success. "I tell a lot of people like [his former football coach] Mr. Kraemer and [history teacher] Mr. Jopek, 'You're a part of this whole thing because you helped shape and influence his life and the direction that he went'… it's a community kind of thing."

Arik is currently in the last of his scheduled three years in the Army but may stay another year as he’s working toward the rank of sergeant.

According to his dad, he's taking all this attention in stride. "He's grateful for the experience," Jon said. "Not sure how many people in Rhinelander have ever been able to do that."

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