Honoring the Fallen at Boardman ceremony

Published May 28, 2019 at 12:05 a.m.
Updated May 28, 2019 at 1:07 a.m.

BOARDMAN

The relation ship between the United States and soldiers who willingly risk their lives to defend it should be a two-way street: Those in or preparing to serve in the military must adhere to an oath to protect the country and in turn, the nation must ensure their needs are met after they return from the battlefield, an Air Force commander contends.

“Our society sent them off to combat, so we have to take care of them. Twenty veterans die by suicide each day,” Lt. Col. Christopher Dobozy said.

Dobozy, a 1989 Boardman High School graduate and command inspector general of the 352nd Civil Affairs Command at Fort Meade, Md., mentioned the sobering statistic in remarks he made as keynote speaker for the 115th annual Boardman Community Memorial Day Program at Boardman Park’s Maag Outdoor Arts Theater.

Dobozy, a recipient of a Bronze Star and numerous other awards, told a crowd of a few hundred who gathered under perfect weather conditions that while assigned to a unit at the University of Vermont in Burlington, he impressed upon young recruits the value of displaying respect, duty to country, courage, integrity, and other such virtues.

Dobozy, who lives in Algonac, Mich., also stressed three duties he feels citizens have an obligation to fulfill: to teach the next generation about our history, such as how our nation was founded by people of many cultures and backgrounds; to care for the country, including returning soldiers’ mental health and welfare; and to remember, for example, that “1,354,664-plus” American soldiers have died in wars since the nation’s founding.

In addition, it’s important to support local Veterans of Foreign Wars posts and other service organizations, said Dobozy, who earned a bachelor’s degree in geography from Youngstown State University and attended flight school at Fort Rucker, Ala.

“You don’t need to be a veteran to help,” he continued.

Dobozy also recited a portion of the speech abolitionist Frederick Douglass gave May 30, 1871, at the Monument to the Unknown Dead of the Civil War at Arlington National Cemetery.

Douglass said in part, “I am no minister of malice. I would not strike the fallen. I would not repel the repentant; but may my ‘right hand forget her cunning and my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth’ if I forget the difference between the parties to that terrible, protracted and bloody conflict.”

Earlier in the speech, Douglass warned that the nation would experience great darkness and sadness if it forgot to pay homage to those who died in the Civil War.

In his remarks, Mark Luke of Boardman Kiwanis, who also served as master of ceremonies, provided a brief history of Memorial Day, noting that it originally was called Decoration Day. The first official observance was May 30, 1868, in line with a proclamation Gen. John A. Logan, an organizer for the former Union Soldiers Brigade, declared to commemorate the sacrifices of those who died in the Civil War, Luke explained.

May 30 was chosen because it was believed that flowers were in bloom all over the U.S., he added.

In 1971, Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act to establish Memorial Day on the last Monday in May. In December 2000, the National Moment of Remembrance Act was passed to encourage Americans to pause at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day for a moment of silence to honor those who had made the ultimate sacrifice, he continued.

Another poignant moment during the program took place when retired Air Force Lt. Col. Bill Moss placed a wreath next to a monument to honor veterans who died in combat. Afterward, James Goske, president of Boardman High’s National Honor Society, placed one nearby in honor of those currently serving.

Also marching in the parade were former students who wanted to pay tribute to and honor Denise Gorski, a longtime physical-education teacher who’s retiring next month as Boardman High’s athletic director.

In addition, two F-16 fighter jets from Toledo flew over the area before the parade.

The Boardman events were among dozens of Memorial Day parades and observances that took place throughout the Valley on Monday.