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RT06152017

WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES JUNE 15, 2017 15 New Vietnam War memorial to honor Queens veterans BY ANTHONY GIUDICE AGIUDICE@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM @A_GIUDICEREPORT The 429 Queens men who made the ultimate sacrifi ce fi ghting for this country’s freedoms in the Vietnam War will soon be forever memorialized at Elmhurst Park in on the Elmhurst/Maspeth border. Members of the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 32 gathered at the park on Friday, June 9, as City Parks Commissioner Mitchell J. Silver, Borough President Melinda Katz and several other elected offi cials unveiled plans for the memorial. “I am just so proud of today, and I’m more proud because I know what we went through to get here. Four-hundred-twenty names are now scheduled to be on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial,” Katz said. “Those are 420 folks who have not been memorialized in the borough of Queens in a permanent fashion, and they should’ve been a long time ago. It should’ve been when they came home, should’ve been a long time ago. And are now going to get some recognition for their families and for their brothers and sisters in arms as folks come here and are able to refl ect on the war and able to show the next generation what we should be doing for our veterans.” The $2.85 million project will transform the northern portion of the park into an expansive memorial with two semi-circular granite walls. One wall will bear the names of the men from Queens who gave their lives in the war, and a history of the war with a list of key events and dates. The other wall will have the five crests of the military, as well as the Vietnam Service Medal etched on the outside, with the inside having an etching of bamboo, a common element of the war. Other features of the memorial will be a fl ag pole, benches, a lawn, planted trees, and a map highlighting important battles in the Vietnam War. The space will be used for small memorial gatherings to honor the heroes, and as a place for residents to refl ect on the sacrifi ces all veterans have made in service of the country. For over a decade, Chapter 32 has been lobbying to get a memorial in Queens. The initial push was led by Pat Toro, the former president of Chapter 32. Aft er Toro died, Michael O’Kane, current president of Chapter 32, spearheaded the push for the memorial. Due to O’Kane’s persistence, the memorial project was fully funded by the borough president’s offi ce and the City Council. “Never again shall one generation of veterans abandon another,” O’Kane said. “That’s the Vietnam Veterans of America’s founding principle, and if the creation of this monument isn’t the absolute embodiment of that, I don’t know what is.” The plans for the memorial still need to be finalized before work starts in fall 2018. Parks expects the project to be open by fall 2019. Senate approves 10 bills to help improve veterans’ lives BY ANTHONY GIUDICE AGIUDICE@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM @A_GIUDICEREPORT Earlier this month, state Senator Joseph Addabbo partnered with Albany colleagues to approve 10 bills that aim to help both veterans and active military personnel. The bevy of bills will (among other things) provide new protections against assault, create more job opportunities, make it easier for those being deployed to get married, and offer increased tax and annuity benefi ts for those who need them. “Our veterans and active duty military members deserve our utmost respect for their service, whether they are being deployed to combat as we speak, remaining active in the reserves, or have already returned home from the battlefi eld to resume their civilian lives,” said Addabbo, who is the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Veterans, Homeland Security and Military Aff airs. “The most vital needs of our current and former military members may diff er from person to person, which makes it very important for us to address a broad spectrum of critical concerns voiced by our servicemen and women.” The bills approved by the Senate with Addabbo’s support are as follows: S.955 would make it a class C violent felony, punishable by up to 15 years in prison, to assault military members or military reserves personnel engaged in the performance of their legal duties; S.927 would make it a class D non-violent felony, punishable by a maximum of seven years in prison, to incite violence against active duty military members or reservists; S.936 creates a multi-agency Task Force – including the Division of Veterans’ Aff airs, Offi ce of General Services, Civil Service, Labor, SUNY, CUNY and the State Education Department – to seek improvements in statewide employment opportunities for veterans; S.2424 would require the Veterans’ Affairs Commission, a group that advises the State Division of Veterans’ Affairs, to work toward implementing a statewide program to better address the varied employment, health, economic, and other concerns of service-disabled veterans; S.1013 would enable military members being deployed in less than 30 days to get married less than 24 hours aft er obtaining their marriage licenses.; S.5158 would require the state’s Aff ordable Home Ownership Development Program to give preferences to applicants who will provide a certain amount of housing for veterans with service-related disabilities; S.4464 would waive the one-time $10 service charge for members of veterans’ organizations obtaining personalized license plates, and eliminate motor vehicle registration renewal fees for active duty military members and honorably discharged veterans and reservists who served on active duty; S.200 would increase annuity payments paid to blind veterans and their surviving spouses; S.959 would allow local governments to make the alternative veterans’ property tax exemption available to all fulltime active duty service members; and S.5411 would allow local governments to provide the alternative veterans’ property tax exemption to reserve members who were activated under “Operation Graphic Hand” in 1970 to address a serious United States Post Offi ce strike. The pieces of legislation are now headed to the state Assembly fl oor for a vote. “I hope these bills will also be considered favorably in the State Assembly before the 2017 legislative session draws to a close later this month,” Addabbo said. “Those who proudly wear the uniform and put their lives on the line for us deserve nothing less.” In another show of support for veterans, Addabbo was on hand for the unveiling of the plans for a new Vietnam War memorial at Elmhust Park on the Maspeth/Elmhurst border that will honor the military men from Queens who made the ultimate sacrifice during the war. Photo via Shutterstock Senator Joseph Addabbo signed off on 10 bills that passed the Senate that would help veterans and active military personnel. Renderings courtesy of NYC Parks Department


RT06152017
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