By Donald Wittkowski
Vietnam veteran Joe McLenaghan felt intensely patriotic as he held the American flag at the start of Sea Isle City’s Memorial Day tribute to the nation’s war dead.
“I have to say, this is the biggest Memorial Day crowd I can remember,” McLenaghan remarked to a fellow veteran as they looked at the hundreds of people who filled Veterans Park for the annual ceremony.
The 71-year McLenaghan, who served with the Army in Vietnam in 1969, was one of the members of Sea Isle’s VFW Post 1963 who were given the honor of presenting the flags for Memorial Day. He was touched by the size of the crowd.
“It is very moving and makes me proud of being here,” he said. “I think it shows that the people of Sea Isle have a strong patriotic spirit.”
About 300 people joined with city dignitaries and members of all branches of the military at the solemn ceremony to remember and honor those who have died in war to protect America’s freedoms.
“Each of them paid the ultimate sacrifice,” Mayor Leonard C. Desiderio said in keynote remarks.
Desiderio told the crowd that because of the bravery of so many men and women in the military, Americans have the fortune of living “under the cloak of Democracy” rather than the pall of tyranny.
Among the veterans sitting in the audience was the mayor’s 91-year-old father, Leonard J. Desiderio, who served in the Army during the Korean War. During the ceremony, the elder Desiderio presented a wreath in memory of the Americans who died in the Korean War.
Charles Haines, commander of VFW Post 1963, had the honor of accepting the wreaths given to him by Desiderio, Jim Gibbons, an 85-year-old Korean War veteran, and other participants in the ceremony. Haines placed the wreaths at the Memorial Fountain at Veterans Park.
One of the ceremony’s highlights was the presentation of “Quilts of Valor” to Army veterans John Felicetti and Timothy MacAleer by the South Jersey Quilts of Valor Foundation. The hand-stitched quilts are a way to comfort local veterans who have been “touched by war.”
In another poignant moment during the ceremony, Haines read a roll call of honored dead veterans who had ties to the local community.
Bugler Jacob Bryan, a member of Sea Isle’s Boy Scout Troop 76, followed the roll call of the dead by playing “Taps.”
The 15-year-old Bryan, who lives in Dennis Township and is a sophomore at the Cape May County Technical High School, described the experience of playing “Taps” as an “incredible” honor.
“I’m very humbled to play for so many people who are so respectful,” he said. “These are people who have helped shape the country into what it is.”
Cape May County Sheriff Bob Nolan, who was one of the speakers, recalled the history of Memorial Day, which was originally called Decoration Day when it began in 1868 as the nation was still recovering from the Civil War.
Nolan said the United States remains a profoundly patriotic nation that is a “shining beacon admired around the world.”
“America has never had a shortage of patriots who are willing to risk their lives for the country,” he said.
While the Memorial Day ceremony focused on the nation’s war dead, Sea Isle also honored the living veterans who attended the ceremony. Mayor Desiderio asked all of the veterans to stand or raise their hands so they could be recognized.
When the crowd began to applaud the veterans, the mayor exhorted everyone to cheer even louder.
“Come on, we can do better than that,” Desiderio urged the crowd, which responded with a roar.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you. Thank you for your service,” Desiderio told the veterans.
At the start of the ceremony, Desiderio called on any active members of the military to be recognized. Bradley Childs, a senior master sergeant in the Air Force, was the only person to raise his hand.
Desiderio then invited Childs to the podium to join with the speakers and other dignitaries sitting on the monument at Veterans Park for the ceremony. The crowd erupted in applause for Childs, who was made the guest of honor by the mayor.
Childs, an 18-year veteran of the Air Force, decided to attend the Memorial Day ceremony while visiting with his father-in-law, Steve Woodruff, who is a Sea Isle resident.
Childs was accompanied by his 5-year-old son, Braxton. He was completely surprised when Desiderio asked him to join the ceremony as the guest of honor.
“It was awesome. I never expected it,” Childs said in an interview. “I was shocked that I was the only active military member in the crowd. It was quite an honor to be recognized in this way.”
