Mayor Leonard Desiderio unveils a sample of a Hometown Heroes banner during the Nov. 12 City Council meeting.
Sea Isle City will honor veterans and active members of the military who have local ties with a new “Hometown Heroes” program featuring large banners placed on decorative light poles throughout town.
Mayor Leonard Desiderio called the banners a “living tribute for Sea Isle City to honor past and present members of the armed forces.”
Desiderio announced the program during the city’s Veterans Day ceremony Tuesday and then unveiled a prototype of the banners on Wednesday at a City Council meeting.
“This is another great honor for veterans,” he said amid applause from the audience and city officials at the Council meeting.
The banners will measure 24 inches-by-48 inches and will be double-sided. They will be displayed on decorative light poles from Memorial Day to Veterans Day, then will be removed for winter.
Desiderio joked that the banners are “almost as tall as me” while holding up the prototype for the audience to see at the Council meeting.
“You can see it’s a nice-size banner. It’s not a postage stamp,” he said.
The customized banners will feature a photo of the veteran or active-duty member, their branch of the military and the time they have served in the armed forces.
Sea Isle now joins with other shore communities that also have banners honoring local veterans and active-duty members of the military. Ocean City Mayor Jay Gillian announced the start of his city’s military banner program during the Veterans Day observance Tuesday.
In Sea Isle, Hometown Heroes banners will be permitted for:
The cost for the banners will be $300. They will be displayed for three years in honor of each veteran or active-duty military member in the program.
Anyone or any families wanting to participate in the program may order a customized banner by clicking the “Hometown Heroes” link on the home page of www.seaislecitynj.us.
