It was as if Victor Rikal Sr. was with Bill Edmiston on Saturday.

“I can feel his spirit here today,” Edmiston said.

Edmiston and another of Rikal's friends, Junior Sloboda, shared those fond memories Saturday at Institute Hill Playground after the playground's shelter was dedicated to Rikal, a Butler native who was killed in naval service in 1969.

“Vic was really down to earth,” Edmiston said. “He was loyal. He was really trustworthy. We had some really good times.”

Around 200 people showed up to honor Rikal, who was one of 74 men who died when the USS Frank E. Evans was cut in half following a collision with the HMAS Melbourne, an Australian aircraft carrier, in the early morning hours of June 3, 1969, in the South China Sea.

“It was more than I expected,” Rikal's widow, Barbara, said of the turnout. “I'm sure it was more than anyone expected. God smiled with good weather, and I've seen people I haven't seen for decades who came to see Vic's plaque.”

Rikal's son, Victor Rikal Jr., was similarly gracious.

“It means an awful lot to our family to see such a big turnout, and to know that he won't be forgotten,” he said.

Rikal Sr.'s plaque was paid for by American Legion Post 117 and Post 778.

A complete report appears in Monday's Butler Eagle.