WWI Memorial Plaques Rededicated in White Plains Ceremony
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By Ryan Raicht
Rev, Erwin Lee Trollinger led an opening prayer to kick off a rededication ceremony of World War I Memorial plaques at the Westchester County Center on Friday.
“As we remember the lives and the families of those who have blessed us with the sacrifice of giving themselves the talent, the skills, so many centuries ago, without their contributions to America and to the World, we wouldn’t have this beautiful day in which we now stand to give honor to them,” Trollinger said.
Trollinger, from the Calvary Baptist Church in White Plains, was followed by the likes of county clergy, and members of Westchester’s Veterans Service Agency.
The World War I monuments were originally placed with trees as memorials before Westchester County Center was erected. But over the years, the memorials were moved several times.
“We were able to find the right people, namely our county executive, who took the advice of so many good veterans that have in their mind every day those people that serve our nation without question,” said Ronald Tocci, Veterans Service Agency Director. “So, we are restoring those memorials as they should be. And we’re asking people to see them, understand what they are and explain to people who take the time to view them.”
Tocci stressed the importance of educating the community’s youth with this rededication ceremony.
“Rededicating means we’re remembering again,” Tocci said. “It’s difficult to get young people to understand what this country was founded for and what it’s all about because people aren’t learning most of our history in school anymore. They’re getting it from TV, from a lot of pundits, and a lot of propaganda on a lot of networks. If there is any obligation for any of us, it’s to teach our younger people what it’s all about.”
Tocci is grateful for the help and swift action of County Executive George Latimer, and the community of Westchester as a whole.
“This community took the time, and certainly wanted to mark in history the sacrifices and the service of special heroes that served in the great war,” Tocci said.
Latimer remembered his own grandfather, a World War I veteran, as he reflected on the countless men that sacrificed their lives for this country over the entirety of its existence.
“When we rededicate ourselves to the sacrifice that these men made, we remind ourselves that the battles that they fought for are never over. They had to be re-fought in the second war, and they had to be re-fought for the principles that put us in Korea and Vietnam and in the Middle East,” Latimer said. “Those principles are still in effect today, and now we turn to young men and women of the current day, and we ask them to be prepared to make similar sacrifice to the sacrifice that these men made. And in this case, the ultimate sacrifice.”
The ceremony was brought to a close by reading the names of World War 1 veterans that were also White Plains residents. Cynthia Abbot Kauffman, president of the White Plains Historical Society, offered details on some of the stories of those servicemen.
“Today we are here to honor 50 local men who served in the Great War. Some were born here, some were not, but all called White Plains their home when they went off to war and never returned home,” Kauffman said. “As we remember them, we also need to remember their families, who gave their beloved son, brother, father, or husband to the cause of freedom.”
Correction: In an earlier posting of this article, Rev. Erwin Lee Trollinger’s name was incorrect. The Examiner regrets the error.
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