Photos: A private tribute to veterans
The Enterprise — Marcello Iaia
Kneeling in prayer on his front lawn in Delanson, Robert Furnia clasped a set of dog tags hanging from a battlefield cross Saturday, surrounded by veterans and Patriot Guard Riders gathered for the ceremony.
The Enterprise — Marcello Iaia
Battlefield cross: The memorial placed on Furnia’s lawn is a customary symbol in military ceremony. The dog tags hung from a hard rubber training rifle that balanced a helmet on top and stood between a pair of military boots — the sight of which stirred a World War II veteran's memory.
The Enterprise — Marcello Iaia
Frank Luksa, 93, spontaneously recalled a memory from D-Day, an Allied invasion France during World War II, to a small crowd gathered to dedicate Furnia’s memorial on Saturday. Luksa, stood by his wife, Theresa, and said he was aboard the USS Herndon as he watched a paratrooper fall into the water and sink to his death.
The Enterprise — Marcello Iaia
Three veterans of the second world war were in attendance — Art Hamilton, Kenneth Bailey, and Frank Luksa. They each have been accommodated by the Honor Flight Network that flies veterans to visit the memorials in Washington, D.C. Hamilton, pictured, accepts a hand-painted rock from the Schoharie Creek from Vickie Furnia, who made the souvenir for the veterans who participated in the Honor Flight.
The Enterprise — Marcello Iaia
Pink Patriots: Kaitlyn Farron sat in the grass wearing a pink vest on Saturday as pictures were taken behind the new memorial to veterans — a battlefield cross — installed at the private home of Robert Furnia in Delanson. Farron’s family is involved with the Patriot Guard Riders, a not-for-profit motorcycling group dressed in black vests aimed at honoring veterans and upholding ceremony.