Cold War Veterans Blog

NJ Veterans Honored

Veterans honored for service

Tuesday, July 15, 2008
By MATT DUNN
mdunn@sjnewsco.com

VINELAND Local war veterans were honored by the state and county Monday for their military service.

At a ceremony at the New Jersey Veterans Home, in Vineland, Gary Englert, director of veteran services for the state, told a crowd there that it was his business to honor veterans.

"They heard the nations call for service and answered it," he said.

Following a presentation of colors and leading of the Pledge of Allegiance by the VFW Post 220, nearly 100 residents were given medals and certificates of recognition.

Close to 50 veterans were honored by the state with medals and over 30 with certificates of appreciation.

About 45 veterans were given county military service medals, including a number of people from Gloucester and Salem counties.

Seven people received cold war certificates of recognition.

A number of veterans were honored posthumously and their relatives were on hand to accept their honors.

According to a spokesman for the state department of military and veterans services, the state regularly honors veterans with the New Jersey Distinguished Service Medal.

The tradition began in the mid-1880s.

The State of New Jersey minted special medals for returning veterans through the Spanish-American War until the end of World War I.

No such medal was available after World War II until in 1988, the New Jersey Distinguished Service Medal was re-authorized by the state Senate.

Since its re-authorization, more than 30,000 medals have been awarded to combat veterans from New Jersey.

Englert described what veterans experienced as being sent to "some foreign place on some distant part of globe,ÕÕ where they suffered through "moments of terrible boredom punctuated by moments of sheer terror.

"What didnt kill them only made them stronger," he said Monday.

According to Englert, veterans made the ultimate sacrifice.

"Because of our veterans, we can take pride in a history of not conquering but disarming of rebuilding," he said.


VINELAND -- As representatives from state and federal veteran affairs associations awarded medals of honor to the residents of the New Jersey Veterans Memorial Home on Monday, a sense of deep pride and emotion welled within their families.
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World War II veteran Leonard Blumberg of Ventnor is suffering from end stage Alzheimer's disease and was one of about 100 residents honored in the home's auditorium.

"It means a lot for us to be recognized even if he's not cognizant," said his daughter, Michelle Blumberg, who was among the many teary-eyed. "They didn't talk about it much -- but to us they're heroes."

Along with her brother, Bob, she stuck by her father's side for the ceremony, whispering in his ear from time to time with words of encouragement.

"He lost his speech, but one of the last things he remembered was music," Blumberg said. "And he would hum the 'Marine Corps Hymn' all the time."

Sgt. 1st Class Allen Rodesky, with the Camden County Veteran Affairs, worked to prepare the awards leading up to the ceremony. State medals and certificates of appreciation, Cold War certificates of recognition and military service medals broken down into Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, Mercer and Salem counties were all distributed.

"It's a way of saying thank you for your service," Rodesky said, "that many have not received for years."