This week, city of Middletown employees will start hanging banners in honor of local veterans on light poles that line Central Avenue. About 100 banners, purchased for $115 (at cost) by family members, will be placed on the poles from Charles Street to Main Street, said Jeri Lewis, community projects coordinator for the city.
A short ceremony will be held at noon May 27 at Governors Square. Then all attendees will be invited to walk or ride along newly upgraded Central Avenue to view the banners that organizers hope become an annual tradition.
Lewis said the purpose of the banners is to thank the veterans and show them the importance of their military service.
“This, literally, is the visual way to do that,” she said. “It’s a way to show them they are incredibly loved, cared for and seen by the city.”
Also, in honor of veterans, numerous Middletown businesses are offering veterans with a military ID discounts on food and services on May 27.
The city’s Memorial Day Parade kicks off at 10 a.m. from Smith Park and travels along Verity Parkway and ends at Woodside Cemetery, followed by a ceremony at 11:30 a.m. The grand marshal is Ret. Sgt. John Kahne, who served in the U.S. Army from 1966-69.
Kahne, 75, was deployed to Vietnam in 1966. He was wounded on June 4, 1967 and awarded a Purple Heart and is a Wounded Warrior. He’s a member of local VWF Post, American Legion and local Social Command.
VETERAN BANNER RECIPIENTS
Banners were purchased in honor of the following veterans. The banners will be placed in alphabetical order starting at Charles Street and Central Avenue to Main Street:
Tim Alexander, Wm. Banks, Thomas Barker, John Barnes, Kenneth Beiser, John Boles, William Brandenburg, Scott Brummagen, Paul Cannoy, Alfonso Capozzi, Ermal Richard Cass, Donald Chafin, David Chapman, Carl S. Cornele, Charles E. Cornele, Donald Cornele, Joseph Cornele Jr., John Cornele Jr., Joseph Cornele Sr., Jackson Cox, Ron Cox.
Rocco DiCristoforo, Joseph Ditmyer, Andrew Dobrozsi, Jason Dranschak, William Estill, Lon Fairchild, John Ferguson, Chester Fleming, Charles Gallop, Mildred Gates, Mike Gomia, Cecil Graham, Jerome Haass, Raymond Hall, Daniel Ivan Handy, Stephanie Hartman, Harold David Hayes, Timothy Hezlep, Jeremy Hoffman, Claude Holcomb, Rodney Johnson.
John Kahne, John Kiesewetter, Mike Kiniyalocts, Lloyd Larison, James Lovill, Frank Lolli Sr., Tanner Meehan, Calvin Moon, William Muthert Jr., Robert Nelson, Samuel Nelson, David Lee Palmer, Earshel Philpot, Harvey Poff, Larry Ray, Delbert Reffitt, Larry Reynolds, Chester Robinson, Jack Robinson, Cecil Runnells, Wallace Sams, Donald Saylor, Rachel Schmidt, John Sennet, Betty Sexton, Charles Sexton, James Sexton, Bill Slusher, Jack Smith, Joe Snider, Stanley Sorrell.
Jim Stabler, Todd and Luann Tadych, Tom Tadych, Joseph Tadych and Homer Sorrell, William Templeton Thorn, Victor Thomas, Gerald Velde, Perry Wallace, Tom Walters, Henry Watson, Ronald Wells, Robert Wendt, William Widener, William Widener Jr., Henry Williamson, Steven Wilmot, Johnny Wireman, Loren Wooton, Glenn Yates, Kenneth Young, Louis Zulock, Paul Zulock.
LOCAL MERCHANTS, DISCOUNTS TO VETERANS
These businesses are offering local veterans discounts on May 27 with a military ID:
- Bandana’s Italian Eatery: 10% off food
- Bourbon’s Kitchen: Free dessert
- Brent’s Smokin Butt’s: 10% off
- Central Connections Café: Free dessert
- Central Pastry: Free doughnut
- Combs BBQ: Two free sides
- Connections Day Spa: 15% off
- DC Roadhouse: Free soft drink
- Grandpa Joe’s Candy: Free gift with $20 purchase
- Haute Fusion Gallery: 15% off workshop
- Hector’s Taco Shop: 10% off
- Legacy Four Potato Bar: 50% off or buy 1 get one free
- My Favorite Things: 50-70% off in the store 10% off Tote 22 Purses
- Primo Italian Steakhouse: 50% off May 27-29
- Start Skydiving: $30-$40 off skydiving media Package (excluding hand cam)
- The Cracked Pot: $10 off a meal
- The Swire Inn: Free appetizer
- Triple Moon Coffee: 20% off everything
HOW TO GO
WHAT: Hometown Heroes Day and Walk
WHEN: noon to 7 p.m. May 27
WHERE: Ceremony at noon at Governors Square, followed by a walk or ride along Central Avenue
WHAT: Middletown Memorial Day Parade, Ceremony
WHEN: Parade starts at 10 a.m. May 29 from Smith Park and travels along Verity Parkway to Woodside Cemetery where a ceremony will start at 11:30 a.m.
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