On Monday, Memorial Day, several elected officials in Brooklyn joined the Brooklyn Canarsie Lions Club in marching in Canarsie, Brooklyn, and paying solemn tributes to remember America’s war dead.
Among the legislators who either marched and/or paid tributes at the parade `were House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, the representative for the 8th Congressional District; State Sen. Zellnor Y. Myrie, a mayoral candidate, who represents the 20th Senate District; Sen. Roxanne Persaud, the Guyanese-born representative for the 19th Senate District; Assembly Member Jamie Williams, the Trinidadian-born representative for the 59th Assembly District; Assembly Member Monique Chandler-Waterman, the daughter of Jamaican and Barbadian immigrants, who represents the 58th Assembly District; Council Member Mercedes Narcisse, the Haitian-born representative for the 46th Council District; and Khari Edwards, candidate for Brooklyn Borough President, whose parents hailed from Trinidad and Tobago, and Guyana.
The parade line-up began at about 10:30 a.m. sharp at the Holy Family Parking Lot near Flatlands Avenue. It proceeded south to Seaview Avenue and then north along Remsen Avenue, stopping at the Canarsie Cemetery for the honor ceremony.
It ended at Conklin Avenue and E 92nd Street at the American Legion, where a small reception was held.
“Each Memorial Day, we honor those who died in service of these United States of America we call home,” Jean Joseph, the Dominican-born president of the Brooklyn Canarsie Lions Club, told the ceremony at the entrance to the Canarsie Cemetery.
“So, today, we gather together in celebration and remembrance of our heroes who died so we may live free.
“May their sacrifice be a constant reminder of the things that matter,” she added. “We are forever grateful for their ultimate sacrifice, and their courage and dedication will never be forgotten.
“Though we may not know them all, we owe them all,” she continued. “Thus, it is both a pleasure and a privilege as president of the Brooklyn Canarsie Lions Club to stand today with our many partnering organizations and local elected officials to celebrate this Memorial Day.
“Yes, though we are saddened when we think about the many lives that have been lost, yet we also celebrate this day,” she said. “We celebrate the freedoms we are able to enjoy because of the sacrifice of our sons and daughters. I remind you that the only place that celebration comes before sacrifice is in the dictionary. And also, as it is said, freedom is not free.”
Therefore, Joseph said America owes “a debt of gratitude to our fallen heroes.
“We must remember that we are the land of the free because of the brave and, without Memorial Day, there will be no Independence Day,” she said, invoking the words of former President Barack Obama, who “reminded us in one of his stirring Memorial Day Speeches: ‘Our nation owes a debt to its fallen heroes that we can never fully repay.’
“Therefore, let’s strive to live by the liberties and principles for which our bravest soldiers fell,” Joseph added. “They are the reason we are free. We salute them with pride and pray that their memory will forever live on in our hearts.”
Williams then read a list of fallen heroes, whose photos lined the wrought-iron fence surrounding the cemetery, facing Remsen Avenue.
Among them were Hyman Partnow, Army Purple Heart, and Sgt. Roshain E. Brooks, Army Purple Heart; CPL. John Salogub, Army Purple Heart; PVT. Raymond Del Toro, Army Purple Heart, Never Found; PVT. Alex Spieler, Army Purple Heart; CPL. Jesus Gomez, Jr., Army Purple Heart; Sgt. Edward Michael Looney, Army Purple Heart; PFC. Albin S Olson, Marines, Purple Heart; Thomas Rourke, Marines, Purple Heart; and PFC. John P. McAuliffe, Army Purple Heart.
Edwards read a poem by John Bernard of the 199th Infantry Combat Engineer, Vietnam.
It says: “As I saw what war can cost, the battle won, but we lost those. My eyes viewed the tragic sight that lasted day and into night.
“The thought of life once lived and loved, that now resides far above,” it says. “They felt the fear but stood to brave, the only way they would behave.
“They heard the voice to heed the call, unselfishly they gave their all,” it adds. “They knew that freedom is not free and gave up their own liberty.
“That we still here as we remain, must remember them again, and again,” it continues. “They sacrificed to keep us free, as we are now and live to be. Remember those soldiers who are no longer here, and appreciate the life and freedom that you have because of them.”
Edwards, whose Trinidadian-born mother, Eleanor Bernard, was killed in her home on East 45th Street in Brooklyn, told Caribbean Life afterward that “Memorial Day stands for sacrifice for our freedom.”
Afterward, Persaud said, “It’s always an honor to be part of the Memorial Day Parade.
“It’s always an honor to pay homage for all those who paid for our freedom,” added Persaud, who has been participating in the parade for 30 years.
Chandler-Waterman said: “It’s beautiful that we’re paying homage to the fallen.”
Narcisse noted that the Memorial Day Holiday “recognizes the people who give their lives for us.
“We have to recognize and thank them,” she said. “We remain faithful.”
In her Memorial Day tribute, Assembly Member Rodneyse Bichotte Hermely,n the Haitian-American chair of the Brooklyn Democratic Party, said: “We pause to honor the brave men and women of the United States Armed Forces who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country.
“These fallen heroes stood in defense of the liberties we enjoy today while protecting our safety and values—their courage continues to guide us,” added the representative for the 42nd Assembly District in Brooklyn.
“May our veterans forever live in our hearts, minds, and souls as we carry on their selfless defense of democracy,” she added, stating, “New York State is the birthplace of Memorial Day and home to over 750,000 veterans.”
