On Thursday, Sept. 13, the four newly elected New York State Department heads, American Legion Commander Gary M. Schacher; American Legion Auxiliary President Marie Mock; Bob Wallace, director — American Legion Riders, as well as Detachment Commander — Sons of the American Legion James Coates, paid a visit to us here in Nassau County.
They were greeted by members of the American Legion, the American Legion Auxiliary as well as an escort by the American Legion Riders.
After joining them at breakfast at the Majestic Diner in Westbury, the department heads were accompanied to Sagamore Hill National Historic Site for an interesting tour of Roosevelt’s retreat.
Sagamore Hill was the home of Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States, from 1885 until his death in 1919.
During Roosevelt’s time in office, his “summer White House,” as it was known, was the focus of international attention. All were inspired by the legacy of one of America’s most popular presidents.
The next leg of the escort brought our guests to the Veterans Memorial at Eisenhower Park, which serves as a tribute to the heroes of Nassau County, and dedicated to the bravery of two groups of Nassau County residents — the deceased veterans of all wars and county firefighters — who lost their lives in the line of duty.
In 1947, the park dedicated a memorial to those who died in World War II, and the Veterans Memorial Plaza has been growing ever since.
Veterans have constructed individual monuments to honor Purple Heart and Medal of Honor recipients, Merchant Marines, veterans of World War II, the Korean War and POWs and MIAs, as well as September 11 Memorial and Agent Orange Awareness, to name a few.
In 1971, the county constructed the Veterans Tower dedicated to Nassau County veterans of the Civil War, Spanish-American War, World Wars I and II, Korean and Vietnam Wars.
In 2015, a monument was added in honor of the Nassau County American Legion Auxiliary.
The avenue of flags represents active veteran organizations in Nassau County and thousands of names appear on the recently constructed Walls of Honor, which honors all residents who served, living or deceased.
In addition, our visitors availed themselves of the Veteran’s Museum located inside the Veteran’s Tower.
Our guests were very impressed by the day’s events and were then welcomed for a delicious meal at a joint visitation dinner at Pompeii restaurant, where they were joined by a large turnout of membership from American Legion, American Legion Auxiliary, and Sons of the American Legion, as well as American Legion Riders for a ceremonial dinner in their honor.
Rosanne Spinner, Sgt.-at-Arms
American Legion Auxiliary — County of Nassau
