For members of the Joint Veterans Organization, the Pearl Harbor Commemoration ceremony is more than a day of awareness – it’s a day of remembrance – especially for members like Robert Condela.
Condela, the Chaplain for Post 1384, began Sunday’s ceremony reminiscing on a previous children’s party that had taken place. Coined “the greatest generations” by many in the past, Condela recognized that the sacrifice of soldiers was to protect the future.
“I was thinking to myself, if it wasn’t for those great men and women back in the ‘40s, we wouldn’t be celebrating Christmas,” he said.
Pearl Harbor day, also recognized as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, was designated by Congress as a national observance in tribute to those who lost their lives during the attack. 2,403 Americans lost their lives, and 1,178 were injured. It was, as President Roosevelt said in his address to Congress, “a day which shall live in infamy.”
The attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7 1941, which included two waves of attacking aircraft, destroyed numerous aircrafts, and sunk or destroyed eight U.S. battleships – including the USS Arizona. The following day, the United States declared war on Japan, officially entering World War II.
City Council President Brendan Finn, whose father served in the military and was a member of the VFW, spoke of the powerful response from Americans following the attacks. Charlie Finn, Finn’s father, was one of millions who, as Finn said, “stormed in droves” to the recruiting stations.
Finn’s father joined the U.S. Navy a month after the Dec. 7 attacks, and served for nearly the length of World War II.
In 2016, Finn had the opportunity to visit the Pearl Harbor Museum in Honolulu, accompanying the New York Police Department’s Pipes and Drums for the 75th anniversary. As their boat of 100 people sailed over the USS Arizona, he recalled the eeriness and the oil bubbles rising from the water.
“I think it’s almost like an eternal flame, a reminder of the spirit of the men who lived and died on that ship,” Finn said.
State Sen. Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, visited in November of 1996 – a visit she said gave her goosebumps.
Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick explained that when her group arrived at the USS Arizona, attendants asked her group of visitors to “conduct themselves with reverence and silence,” as the ship acts as a burial place for those lives lost. It made her think about World War II, and the young men who served.
Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick thanked Post 1384 for hosting the event, highlighting the importance of remembering their sacrifice, as well as the sacrifices of others who serve the country.
“There’s no one to remember them other than us,” she said.
The commemoration began with a presentation of colors. Peggy Costigan, president of the American Legion Auxiliary, sang the national anthem and “God Bless America.” Reverend Steven McClerndon of Long Beach Catholic gave both the invocation and benediction.
John McManus, a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars auxiliary, played hymns dedicated to military service on the bagpipes, including “Amazing Grace” and “Bright Blue Yonder.”
“This is a date that we have to take and remember that those men and women that perished on that day, on that attack that brought us into [World War II], were just like us sitting around,” Condela said. “We honor them today and all the others that passed away in that war.”
