Breakfast organized to celebrate veterans
The Coshocton Blue Star Mothers hosted a veterans’ breakfast in honor of Veterans Day in the Coshocton County Community Room on Chestnut Street Saturday morning Nov. 11.
West Lafayette 2023 Homecoming Queen Maddie Larrison and Bakersville Homecoming Queen Miley Sesser attended to help serve and meet the veterans. “I’m helping serve food and drinks to the vets. I am thankful and proud of these men for serving our country,” Sesser said.
Larrison brought roses for the vets and partnered with Ridgewood Elementary school pre-k up to third grade students who colored pictures to be used as placemats along with cards to give to the veterans. She had nearly 300 cards, letters and pictures to give to them.
Isleta UM Church ladies crochet group has been making red, white and blue lap shawls to give to the veterans in nursing homes.
Trish Girard is a new member of the Blue Star mothers. This is her first year as a member and her first year to serve at the breakfast. She is second vice president of the local Blue Star Mother’s group. “My dad was a Navy Vet, unfortunately he passed last December. My son Bladen Johnson is currently stationed in San Diego on the USS Somerset. Her Uncle Frank Spinks is also military.
Tom Dile displayed part of his collection of more than 1,000 military items at the breakfast. He served 20 years in the U.S. Army, including Desert Storm. “This is the fifth year for Military Appreciation Day. I’m thrilled with the turn out we got. Everything here is from my collection, information, pictures, posters. We are partnering with the Blue Star Mothers this year. This is a way of showing our appreciation.”
Speaker for the breakfast was retired U.S. Marine Master Gunnery Sergeant Jim Priest. He grew up in the city of Coshocton. He started his military career about a year after high school, went through boot camp in San Diego, California, attending communication school there. He was a telephone technician, working on field radios in the maintenance and communication field. After that he was sent to Okinawa, Japan.
Priest has 36 years of service credit for retirement, most of that was reserve time, but he was called three times for active duty combat in Iraq and active duty New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Priest spoke about his military career and all the sacrifices made by his family and his employer because he was gone for an extended period of time due to the active duty orders they received. Priest wished, “A Happy Birthday to all my brothers and sisters in the Marine Corps.”
The Marine Corps was established Nov. 10, 1775 by the 2nd Continental Congress.
Aaron Shearer, county veterans service officer said, “This is my first time attending this event. I got started with the veterans service office in February this year. I was recently accredited as a County Veteran Services officer thru ODDS, the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars and have been working with veterans needs at the office for VA claims, disability compensation, pensions, helping their family members as well as with the financial assistance program for veterans and their spouses. It’s been a pleasure to work in the office and be back around the veterans. I served 16 years in the Air Force and recently medically retired. So this has been a good opportunity for me to feel like I am not only involved in the community but to be a part of something, trying to help folks out.”
Category: People & Places
