The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
KOREAN WAR ARMISTICE
Ceremony marked 63 years since start of the Korean War
TORRINGTON >> The city commemorated the 63rd anniversary of the armistice which marked the end of the Korean War with a ceremony Wednesday afternoon in Coe Memorial Park.
July 25 was designated as National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day by President Barack Obama, while Mayor Elinor Carbone — through a proclamation read aloud by City Council member and Acting Mayor Drake Waldron — deemed July 27 the celebration of the occasion in the city.
“We thank our Korean War veterans for serving our nation and the world with courage and distinction,” said Waldron. “These patriots advanced the principles and ideals upon which our nation was founded, and they helped promote liberty, opportunity and hope.”
Waldron “(encouraged) all Torrington residents to recognize the bravery and sacrifice of our veterans through ceremonies and prayers,” and to “treat all veterans and their families with (the) respect and dignity they deserve” as part of the proclamation.
Torrington Veterans’ Service Committee Chairman Leo Martigneni then read aloud a series of facts about the Korean War, noting that July 27 marked the 63rd anniversary of the signing of the armistice that brought the fighting to an end.
Wreathes were put forward
“We thank our Korean War veterans for serving our nation and the world with courage and distinction. These patriots advanced the prinicples and ideals which our nation was founded.” — Acting Mayor Drake Waldron
by a series of local organizations upon the occasion, as representatives of each group came forward and saluted the ceremonial offerings.
Veterans in attendance during the ceremony were asked to step forward as well, and were celebrated by onlookers with a round of applause.
As the proceedings wound to a conclusion, a rifle salute was offered on the steps of the Coe Memorial Park Civic Center, and “Taps and “Amazing Grace” were played.
State Representative Michelle Cook said that it was important to hold the ceremony in order to recognize the service of local veterans and their families, and to keep history in the minds of future generations.
“It’s extremely important that we don’t forget the services and the sacrifices that our veterans have made for us, for us to be able to afford the freedoms that we have. I think that we, as generations have passed, often forget. We might not be taught what’s important, or what the past history has given us,” said Cook. “I think that we need to do everything that we can to ensure that the generations that are in front of us do not forget the importance of things, and the cost of lives that have been lost, and the sacrifices that not only an individual has made, but families have made.”
The committee holds ceremonies marking important days in U.S. history involving veterans: Memorial Day, Veterans Day and Pearl Harbor Day, and also honors Vietnam and Gulf War veterans annually.