logo
Springfield to remember fallen veterans in Friday ceremony

Springfield to remember fallen veterans in Friday ceremony

Yahoo22-05-2025

SPRINGFIELD – The city will remember fallen veterans in a Friday commemoration leading up to Memorial Day.
The event, organized by the Veterans' Services Department, will be held at noon on the steps of City Hall. It will include a speaking program and memorial wreaths will be placed at each of the five monuments to veterans, located at Veterans Way, across from City Hall.
The public is invited to attend.
'We want to acknowledge and honor the memory of our brave and dedicated veterans who gave the ultimate sacrifice to protect the freedoms we enjoy today. Freedom is never free, and it is because of our veterans that we are the beacon of democracy, strength, hope, and opportunity. God bless our veterans and God bless the city of Springfield,' Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said in advance of the event.
Read the original article on MassLive.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum WWII panel features two veterans' tales of valor
Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum WWII panel features two veterans' tales of valor

Yahoo

time2 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum WWII panel features two veterans' tales of valor

Driving rain fell with the ferocity of machinegun fire while thunder bombarded the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force's rotunda as if it were distant air strike's. Yet, the elements could not overcome the power of the stories being told by World War II veteran airmen 1st Lieutenant Kenneth Beckman and Staff Sergeant Bruce Cook during the museum's 5th Annual WWII panel. Sean O'Dwyer, the museum's education program manager and panel moderator, said while all four panelists from last year's event were alive, Beckman, 102, and Cook, 99, were the only two who could make the trip. Beckman, originally from Northampton, Massachusetts, now hails from St. Petersburg, Florida. Cook lives in West Columbia, South Carolina. The two told stories about close calls, fellow crewmen's practical jokes and harrowing missions. They did so to the best of their recollections, which were much better than they let on, particularly Beckman's as many of his stories were accompanied by the exact date of the mission. The panel was one portion of Sunday's events, which were part of four days of Memorial Day events that the museum planned in honor of the 26,000 airmen of the Eighth Airforce who never returned from WWII. More of the museum's Flags for the Fallen events have been planned for Monday, May 26. O'Dwyer asked the two centenarians a series of questions, helping them call up long dormant moments from their pasts. He started by asking what they were doing when Pearl Harbor was attacked on Dec. 7, 1941. Cook said he was 16 and standing in a doorway when someone came by saying that the Hawaiian naval station had been bombed. "And to me, that didn't mean a whole lot," he said because he had never heard of it before. Beckman actually resigned from the Naval Academy because his roommate's grandfather was a doctor with the with the Navy, and he had heard that a war with Japan was "just around the corner." So he signed up with the Army Air Corp in November of 1941. For him, Dec. 7 of that year started like any other day until about 4 p.m. when he heard what had happened at Pearl Harbor. Beckman went on to serve as a navigator within the 305th Bomb Group while Cook was a waist/ball gunner and toggler for the 379th. Beckman attributed his desire to be an aviator to his first flying experience when he was five years old. The manager of Northampton airport knew his father and invited Beckman for a ride in a two-seater airplane. During the war, he went on 48 missions over two tours. He signed up for a second tour after he decided he wanted to become a permanent officer. He flew with two U.S. presidents, Harry Truman and Dwight Eisenhower. Beckman described two close calls he had in service. One involved a German pilot who flew his Messerschmitt Me 262 "absolutely vertical" 20 feet off the right wing, so close Beckman could see he was blond with glasses and a white scarf. "I guess I saw him for all of a split second," he said, but he never forgot it. Another close call occurred when his crew's right wing engine had been hit and caught fire. He called that a death notice because a fire usually proceeded an explosion, which typically meant crew members had five to 10 seconds to grab a parachute and jump. In that moment, he secured his parachute and dangled his feet out the escape hatch and then he heard a copilot tell everyone the fire was out. He did not have to jump. Had he jumped he would have done so over enemy territory and undoubtedly been taken as a prisoner of war. Cook could not recall ever being scared beyond his first mission when he told a peer he could not get into the ball turret with his parachute on. The peer said that they could leave his parachute aside and if they got shot down maybe he could get up and grab it in time. Cook was then worried the whole four hours and fifteen minutes of that first, and likely his shortest, mission. Beyond that, he did not recall being scared very much in the air. He did remember a time when a plane ahead of his caught fire. The flames streamed behind it so much that a crewman on his plane thought their plane had caught fire and a miscommunication led another crewman to grab his chute and jump out over enemy territory. Cook told another story of how he shot at an approaching fighter, taking him out. Later the other gunner on the plane also claimed to have shot the enemy fighter down. When the crew got back to base they flipped a coin to see who would claim the hit. "Malone won," he said. Years later when he looked at the military records it only stated that a bomber shot down a fighter, giving no particular airman credit. Both Cook and Beckman flew dozens of missions throughout their tours of duty. Cook joked that officers and enlisted men such as himself did not always hang out during the war, but it was an honor to be speaking with Beckman about their experiences and the men they served with. Beckman and Cook, while grateful for the museum's recognition, deflected any praise heaped upon them. When asked to reflect on Memorial Day's meaning, Cook said he did not deserve the praise that the museum and community were giving him. To underscore the point of the holiday, he recollected one more story of a fellow airman who was less fortunate. During the war, a young man Cook referred to as Albert was moved to another plane to make way for Cook's return to his crew. Cook said on Albert's first mission with the new crew their plane was shot down. Albert and others bailed out over enemy territory while the crew's pilot went down with the plane. For Beckman, Memorial Day is an "opportunity for me to think about the fellows that didn't make it, they were the real heroes." He then paused before expressing that he was at a loss for words "to describe how wonderful life can be when the world is at peace." Joseph Schwartzburt is the education and workforce development reporter for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at JSchwartzburt@ and JoeInTheKnow_SMN on Instagram. This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum WWII panel features two veterans

Pastor opens dialogue on Christianity and LGBTQ+ in Rockford
Pastor opens dialogue on Christianity and LGBTQ+ in Rockford

Yahoo

time20 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Pastor opens dialogue on Christianity and LGBTQ+ in Rockford

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — A Rockford pastor is working to bridge Christian theology with the LGBTQ+ community by hosting a conversation on Biblical scripture and sexuality. 'Just because it's not listed [in the Bible], that there are others within that spectrum, it doesn't mean that they're not God ordained,' said Zion Lutheran Pastor Mike Thomas, who led a conversation on Christian scripture and its relation to sexuality on Tuesday afternoon at Katie's Cup, 502 7th Street. Thomas said it took him 30 years to become an LGBTQ+ ally. 'I wasn't advocating. I was spineless,' he said. Today, Thomas is using Pride Month to open a conversation on how Christianity and sexuality intersect. 'We celebrate having conversations like this one today here, as well as at church on Sunday, to talk about what does the Scripture say about people who are in the gay community,' Thomas said. In many denominations, views interpreting homosexuality as a sin or aberration have softened, with recent studies showing a growing number of Americans support the LGBTQ+ community. 71-year-old Debbie Raymond said attitudes toward gay people have come a long way. 'At the beginning, it was very tough. You basically lived in a closet, you know, you didn't talk very much,' she recalled. Now, she's a proud member of the Lutheran church. Raymond credited events such as the one at Katie's Cup for helping to bring her and others back to religion. 'Go talk to pastors, go talk to congregations. You know, do your research, understand the first rule: I was born this way,' she said. 'It's wonderful to be able to change people's perspective on understanding what Scripture says, as well as what the central message of God's grace and mercy, through Christ. In the Gospels, that's the emphasis that we focus on,' Thomas said. Thomas also said he saw more Christian denominations than ever before at this year's on Saturday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Carbondale City Hall foyer to get facelift, display donated historic items
Carbondale City Hall foyer to get facelift, display donated historic items

Yahoo

time20 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Carbondale City Hall foyer to get facelift, display donated historic items

Carbondale native Frank 'Chauncey' Zazzera donated four handmade models of historic Carbondale buildings to the city to honor his late best friend and share the history of his hometown. While the 81-year-old who now lives in Fell Twp. hoped the city would display the replicas — the former Carbondale viaduct, a Delaware and Hudson Gravity Railroad roundhouse that was once in the city, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church and the Pugliano building at Enterprise Drive and Dundaff Street — his donation inspired a renovation project to give Carbondale's 130-year-old-plus City Hall a revitalized foyer. The replicas were all handcrafted by fellow Carbondale native Harold Ort, and Zazzera donated them to the city in honor of his longtime best friend, Roy Miley of Carbondale, who died in 2023. 'I'd just like the people of Carbondale to really enjoy it. I just don't want them to stay in my attic. Who's going to see them up there?' Zazzera said. 'This way, everybody can see them and reminisce.' Models that were inspired by churches in Carbondale will be displayed in the foyer of Carbondale City Hall Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER) Built in 1892-1894, Carbondale City Hall at 1 N. Main St. is a Romanesque Revival-style brick and bluestone building that has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1983, according to a building study in January by Martina Bacarella Architect, a Scranton-based architecture studio. City Hall underwent a comprehensive renovation project in 1996 that included upgrading the fire-suppression system, redesigning the council chambers, installing an elevator and enclosing a staircase in the rear of the building for accessibility, but the improvements didn't touch the foyer aside from adding the current oak doors into City Hall, Mayor Michele Bannon said. The front of Carbondale City Hall Tuesday. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER) When Zazzera approached her about donating his collection of replicas to display in City Hall, Bannon thought it would be the perfect opportunity to upgrade the foyer. 'When you walk into a grand building like City Hall … you want it to be beautiful. You want it to be opulent,' she said. 'I thought that'd be a great way to show off our history, but at the same time, make it an elegant piece of the building.' Now, work is underway to upgrade the foyer's interior, with Bannon hoping to finish the improvements by the end of the month using a $3,000 grant from the Lackawanna Heritage Valley Authority. The city is also in the engineering phase of a project to upgrade its police station, which is in City Hall, including upgraded workstations for officers and enhanced security, she said. The police station project will use $300,000 in funds from the state's Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program, or RACP, Bannon said. She hopes to complete the police station project this year, though it could spill over into 2026. A view of the interior of Carbondale City Hall Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER) City Hall's foyer is currently being repainted, with other work including new furniture like railroad-style benches, displays for Zazzera's donations, revitalized tile flooring and potentially more lighting, said Bannon, who lauded the donated labor the city has received. For interior design, a local woman, Lynn Wallis, toured the foyer and gave the city suggestions for color palettes, furniture and displays. Adams Cable donated large, framed prints of historic Carbondale scenes to display; Councilman Walter Martzen refurbished and re-plastered a water-damaged wall; city zoning and code enforcement officer Doug Calzola, who is also a contractor, is overseeing the project; residents Margie Famularo and Marjanie Hellman provided technical assistance and support; and inmates from SCI Waymart are painting the interior, Bannon said. 'Everything is volunteer — the only thing we've paid for are materials,' she said. 'Every single person has donated their time, their treasures and their talent.' For Zazzera, displaying the replicas will showcase pieces of Carbondale's history that younger generations never got to see, especially regarding the D&H Railroad and its history. 'It's part of our history, and it's never going to go away,' Zazzera said. Zazzera recalled Ort, who he knew since the 1960s, building the models himself as part of a sprawling Lionel model train collection. Ort was a master electrician, Zazzera said. 'He was a very clever fellow,' he said, noting the viaduct and roundhouse were both made to scale. 'He had so many switches and components in that roundhouse that the actual turntable inside the roundhouse would turn.' After Ort died in 2018, Zazzera and his late best friend, Miley, approached Ort's wife to buy some of the buildings from his collection. When Miley passed away in 2023, Zazzera reached out to the Carbondale Historical Society about donating the items, but with the society tucked away on the third floor of City Hall, he hoped more people could see them, prompting him to contact Bannon. 'I want them someplace that people could see and appreciate what this is,' he said. The displays will be in memory of Miley while crediting Ort for making them, Zazzera said. In the future, Bannon wants to seek grant funding to address City Hall's exterior, with the largest expense being to replace its single-pane windows, which are original to the building. Several years ago, the city received an estimate that replacing the windows would cost nearly $1 million, she said. 'How can we expect developers and investors and existing business owners to make improvements in their properties if we're not willing to do them in ours?' Bannon said, emphasizing the need to use grants, donations and volunteerism to avoid overburdening taxpayers. 'I can't embellish enough how blessed we are to have so many people who want to see us thrive.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store