Seaford honors the brave

A little girl in a Daisy Scout’s vest walked with her mother and sister to give a man in uniform a handmade bookmark. This man, Al Klages, fought in the Korean War as a paratrooper. He accepted the little girl’s bookmark, made of beads and string, and offered her something in return. She responded by saying she did not need a gift, and just wanted to thank him for what he did for her country.

This is just one of the ways the Seaford community thanked veterans at the Veterans Day service at the American Legion hall on Penatiquit Avenue off Merrick Road. The morning started with a speech from the commander Post 1132, William Harms, followed by the chaplain and first, second and third officers. “We believe our strength on the field of battle, on the supply lines which nourished our armed might, lay in the justice of our cause against the forces of evil,” Harms said in his speech.

The speeches were followed by a firing detail consisting of Terence Murphy, Joseph Muller and Stan Swenson. Other attendees included the Seaford Fire Department, Boy Scout Troop 239, Cub Scout Pack 581, Girl Scout Troop 3626 and Daisy Troop 381.

“It is truly an honor for our troop to come here and commemorate the members of this Legion,” said Jim Hayden, the scoutmaster of Troop 239 which is chartered by the post.

The American Legion has been holding an annual Veterans Day ceremony since its inception. The building’s exterior is adorned with three wreaths dedicated to the Legion and Fire Department, and veterans memorial statue. It continues to honor and celebrate Seaford organizations dedicated to bettering the community and serving the nation. This was Harms’s speech. “We recognize service to our country,” he said, “and her cause does not end with the termination of military service.”