“This Memorial Day is like no other, not only for us here on Shelter Island but across our country,” said Town Councilman Jim Colligan, guest speaker at the annual commemoration at American Legion Mitchell Post 281 — pre-recorded this year due to COVID-19.
Typically, Shelter Island’s Memorial Day observance brings out a crowd — rain or shine. First, there’s a ceremony at the Town Dock to honor sailors lost at sea, then a community parade around the Town Center (twice), followed by a service at the Legion Hall with prayers, speeches, and a 21-gun salute. Capping it off is a barbecue sponsored by the Shelter Island Lions Club.
But that gathering can’t happen this year, due a ban on crowds that’s part of New York’s virus containment strategy. So, the Legionnaires and others came up with an alternative that called for recording the usual ceremony amid the memorial stones outside the Legion Hall.
Memorial day like no other
You can watch the ceremony on Monday, May 25 at 10AM on Channel 22, the local public access. Filmed by Mary Ellen McGayhey, it will air on the hour throughout the day.
Starting Monday, you can also visit the graves of the war dead in cemeteries around the Island; they’ll be marked with small American flags. The Legion and Legion Auxiliary work annually with scouts and other volunteers to place the flags in keeping with long-standing traditions.
And, you can participate in a Town-wide moment of silence on Monday. Listen for the church bells and horns from the Island’s firehouses at 10AM and join the collective moment of silence follows.
Featured speaker at this year’s pre-recorded service is Jim Collligan, formerly a colonel in the U.S. Army, is a veteran of Vietnam and Desert Storm and recipient of two Bronze Stars. Here’s a transcript of his Memorial Day remarks:
This Memorial Day is like no other, not only for us here on Shelter Island but across our Country.
COVID-19 continues to challenge Americans in all 50 states and I would be remiss if I didn’t recognize all of our essential workers, especially those on the front lines, namely our medical community and beyond, who continue to put their lives in danger to help protect all of us.
We want to salute all of you and to say thank you. Your sacrifices have not gone unnoticed and at a later time, when we are not bound and defined by COVID-19, we as a Town want to celebrate your dedication, professionalism, and service to others.
Although there won’t be any parades, major speeches, or 21-gun salutes, this Memorial Day, our Legion Commander Dave Clark and his staff, are committed to honoring our former service members who have died in battle and those who returned home and have since passed. Many of these men and women are buried here on Shelter Island.
Typically, one of the more important aspects of Memorial Day, traditionally takes place on Sunday afternoon, prior to Memorial Day, when our scouts, student and adult volunteers, unselfishly take the time to place U.S. flags on the graves of all veterans who are buried here on Shelter Island.
That took place yesterday — thank you to all those volunteers. I would also like to express our deepest appreciation to all our former soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen, as well as to their families, who sacrificed so much.
It was good to hear the church bells ring from all our local churches, as well as the Shelter Island Fire Department horns, at exactly 10AM. More importantly, we observed a moment of silence and during that time we were able to focus our full attention on the most significant part of Memorial Day, namely to remember, to pray for, to give thanks to those who gave their lives for this great country.
I want to personally thank Mary Ellen McGayhey for taking the time to find some amazing old footage taken from previous Memorial Day Parades and for sharing them with you today. She also went into our Legion Hall and photographed many of our fallen heroes whose pictures are displayed on our walls.
Literally hundreds of Islanders have served in the Civil War, both World War I, World War II, the Korean and Vietnam wars, and in Operation Enduring Freedom.
In a moment, Father Peter DeSanctis will be reading the names of those 19 former service members from Shelter Island who went off to war and died serving their country. Seventeen of these 19 service members were younger than 25. During the Civil War, seven of our men died right here in the United States during a very difficult time when thousands of Union and Confederate soldiers died on the battlefield.
Those who fought in the world wars died far away from home, in places like Italy, Germany and across the South Pacific. In addition, we lost soldiers in both Korea and Vietnam and most recently, U.S. Army 1st Lt. Joseph J. Theinert who died in Afghanistan almost 10 years ago. Like many of those before him, Joe died a hero, saving the lives of his soldiers.
Last year’s guest speaker at Memorial Day was Howard Jackson who has since passed away. Howard was recognized as a hero in WWII, the Korean War and the Cold War.
In the past year, Shelter Island has lost dozens of veterans who served their country with honor and distinction — I would love to name them all but would fear leaving someone out. Please take time today to pray for all of these patriotic men and women who sacrificed their lives for us to be free.
The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it.
They left their homes to fight on distant battlefields. They didn’t go off to war because they loved fighting. They were called to be part of something bigger than themselves. Most of them were just ordinary people who responded in extraordinary ways in very difficult times.
This is why we are here today, to remember and to celebrate the lives of our fallen heroes. God bless all Americans and especially our Shelter Island men and women who are currently serving in our armed forces.
