Not forgotten
Stanton plans to honor Iraq veterans


ALTAMONT — Drop in unannounced to take a picture of Darlene Stanton and what is she wearing" Red, white, and blue, of course.

She describes herself as a patriot and has put her effort for years into helping veterans.

As president of the Ladies Auxiliary at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post in Altamont, Stanton is currently working on a community-wide celebration for Veterans Day — A Salute to Hometown Heroes. It will take place on Saturday, Nov. 5, in Orsini Park at the center of the village.
"Tim McIntyre came up with the idea," said Stanton. McIntyre is the head of public works for the village and active in community affairs. "He was in the service himself. We know a lot of the kids coming back now from Iraq and Afghanistan," she said. "They deserve a welcome home."
Stanton knows "the kids" because she’s spearheaded a campaign to send care packages to local men and women serving abroad.

She describes, with tears filling her eyes, what she envisions for Saturday afternoon on the village green.
"The sun will be shining. It will be warm, but not too warm," she says. "After the parade, our Gold Star Mother will change the wreath. There will be veterans from World War II and Korea and Vietnam and Desert Storm, and they will all come together with the new veterans.
"We’re going to honor these kids, and their parents too, for what they’ve been through — for us. I don’t want them to feel like the guys did coming home from Vietnam. I don’t want them to be forgotten."

Stanton’s voice trails off.

Her husband, Arthur, a trucker, served in the Vietnam War. She joined the VFW because he did.
"When they came back from Vietnam, it wasn't like the other wars. When our guys came back, they were spit on and called baby killers," said Stanton.

She’s had help in planning the Nov. 5 celebration.
"A lot of the Vietnam vets say, ‘They didn’t do this for us,’ and I tell them, ‘If I was here, I would have.’"
Her husband, she said, does not have good memories of the war. While watching TV news coverage now, he’ll say, "They build up one soldier dying. Do you know how many soldiers we lost""
"I want to be sure it’s different this time," said Stanton.

Everyone’s mother

Stanton says her work on veterans’ projects takes as much time as a full-time job, about 40 hours a week.

She works the bar at the Boyd Hilton Post in Altamont.

She is president not just of the local auxiliary but she is also Albany County Council president and conductress for the Third District.

She has worked on projects ranging from essays and artwork contests for children to putting together holiday baskets for elderly vets in the Veterans Affairs Hospital or donating goods to local shelters for homeless veterans.
"I feel it makes a difference," said Stanton. "I appreciate what I have," she said, struggling for words to express herself. "And it feels good to help people who might otherwise be forgotten."

She’s also involved in many local celebrations — a Gold Star tea, for parents whose children have been killed in battle; the annual Fourth of July picnic; Altamont’s Memorial Day parade.

Stanton grew up in Clarksville, the oldest of three children in a family dedicated to community service.

Her parents, Donald and Mary Ann Hendrickson, both volunteered for the Onesquethaw Fire Company and were leaders of Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. Her father, now retired, drove a fire engine for the Albany Fire Department and was an emergency medical technician. Her mother did volunteer work along with raising the three children — Darlene, Donald, and David.
"She was always like a mother, even as a girl," said Mary Ann Hendrickson. "She was always babysitting somebody’s kid. My youngest son, David, she’s his mother."

Stanton works now as a nanny.
"She’s got a great personality; she gets along with a lot of people," said Hendrickson.
Stanton credits others. The response to the Nov. 5 Hometown Heroes Day, she said, has been "awesome."
"We’re sending out invitations to all the kids we know, all of our kids," she said. "They have been so appreciative that they have not been forgotten."

Stanton is looking for others to invite and celebrate; she urges those who are veterans or who know veterans to call her at 768-2586 or e-mail her at [email protected].
"We all work well together," said Hendrickson of the women in the auxiliary. "When Darlene says she needs help, everyone volunteers."

Both mother and daughter are women of action.

When The Enterprise asks Stanton if she has a favorite picture at the post she’d like to pose next to, she immediately describes a float in a recent Altamont Memorial Day parade. Marines, dressed in World War II garb, reenacted the raising of the American flag at Iwo Jima.

Stanton scans the walls, each covered with a wide array of plaques, awards, certificates, and photographs. First, she looks in the pine-paneled meeting room, then crosses purposefully through the room with the bar where a few men sit watching television, then on into the room next the kitchen, where she often works.
"There it is," she says, pointing to the picture that looks much like the famous one by Joe Rosenthal.

The photograph is blocked, though, by stacks of metal folding chairs, resting in bins.

Before the photographer can suggest another venue, mother and daughter have wordlessly set to work, clearing the bins of chairs from the wall. In no time, the picture is visible.

Stanton points to the treasured photograph and flashes a ready smile.