MILITARY & VETERANS AFFAIRS
NEWS RELEASE

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONTACT:

Kryn P. Westhoven, Public Affairs Specialist

609-530-6950 or cell 609-847-22156

      Representatives from more than two dozen veterans' organizations participated in the State Memorial Day Ceremony on Saturday at Brig. Gen. William C. Doyle Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Wrightstown.

 

      More than 1,000 people attended the ceremony, which included a flyover by two New Jersey Air National Guard F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter jets and the presentation of wreaths to honor America's fallen service members.

 

      Maj. Gen. Glenn K. Rieth, the Adjutant General, said it was fitting that New Jersey's Memorial Day Ceremony is held at the busiest state veterans cemetery in the nation, averaging nearly 3,000 internments each year.

 

      “I can think of no better place to begin a Memorial Day than among the 38, 815 veterans who call this hallowed ground their final resting place,” Rieth said.

 

      The general said it was important to remember the true meaning of the holiday and not let it be lost in all the other activities of the weekend. But remembering those who died protecting the American way of life should be cause for celebration.

 

      He said the line from the World War II icon, Gen. George S. Patton, summed it up best: “It is foolish to mourn the men who died. We should thank God such men lived.”

 

      Stephen G. Abel, a retired Army colonel and the state's Deputy Commissioner of Veterans Affairs, said that each generation of Americans has an obligation to explain to the next the meaning of the sacrifices of those who died serving their country.

 

      “It is up to us to make your sacrifices mean something. You have done all you can do,” Abel said. “May you rest in peace and honor.”

 

      Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno noted that Doyle is the final resting place of nine veterans of America's current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, including Staff Sgt. Frank Carville, who was among four New Jersey Army National Guard soldiers killed in Iraq over two fateful days in June 2004.

 

      “Where do we find such heroes, here in New Jersey and across America? And what is it exactly that sets them apart?” she asked. “I do know what unites them: An unwavering love of America, its ideals rooted in freedom and liberty for all, and the abounding promise it offers all who call it home ...We must never forget them. We must never forget their sacrifice.