By JUDY RATTNER and TIFFANY RAZZANO
The event was sponsored in conjunction with Rockville Centre's American Legion Post #303.
"It was such a pleasure to be able to honor the American Legion Post #303 and our World War II Veterans at Maple Pointe Assisted Living," said Carolyn Tynan, executive director at the facility. "Whether it was military personnel, soldiers manning observation towers, or women serving as airplane spotters, the veterans made our freedom possible."
"Over 400,000 mothers and fathers made the ultimate sacrifice for the good of free people everywhere," said Pat Maher, director of community relations at Maple Pointe. "We will never forget their spirit and commitment to the common defense of our nation. We can't thank them enough."
A highlight of the event, Tynan said, was Eugene Murray, former mayor of Rockville Centre, and others speaking about their personal experiences in World War II. "We all felt that we were living history when we had a chance to listen to the veterans' first hand renditions of the events that happened to them during WW II," she said.
"What started all this is if you ask the kids today, even my own grandchildren, about what World War II is, the kids are not aware of what we fought for," said Charlie Cino, finance officer for American Legion Post #303, who helped organize the event. "If we hadn't invaded Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 1944, we would be saying 'Heil Hitler' today. We need to honor and keep honoring our veterans who fought in the wars for the freedom we are enjoying today. God bless all of our veterans. If you love freedom, thank a veteran."
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Photos by Adil Borluca/Herald
