Montgomery Township will celebrate and honor our Veterans on Veterans Day, November 11, 2021 starting with a Procession commencing at 3:00 p.m. at the intersection of Harlingen Road and Devon Drive and ending at theMontgomery Veterans Park on Harlingen Road. The Procession will be followed by a Ceremony starting at 3:30 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial.
The celebration will include Presentation of Colors by the Boy and Girl Scouts, readings from Montgomery Lower Middle School students, musical selections by the Montgomery High School Band, recognition of our Veterans present, Rifle Salute by the American Legion Post 339 and the playing of Taps. Speakers will include Reverend Christopher Heitkamp of the Harlingen Church; Mayor Devra Keenan of Montgomery Township; Guest Speaker Vincent Barragan, Captain, United States Army; Lisa Romano, Vice Principal of the Montgomery Township Lower Middle School; Mary McLoughlin, the Superintendent of Montgomery Township Schools; Mike Maloney of Rolling Thunder and Dimitra Bairaktaris, Chairperson of the Montgomery Veterans Memorial Committee. Come join us!
Our building fund raising program was closed out with completion of construction of the Montgomery Veterans Memorial. Thanks to the generous contributions of money, goods, and services from the members of our community and those outside our community who support our efforts, we were able to complete the entire construction program with the resources that were available to us. One of the most remarkable features of our highly successful fund raising program was the number of individuals and organizations who gave multiple times during the course of our campaign, which began in 2002.
Although construction is now complete, our work with the Veterans Memorial is just beginning. We wish to continue improving the site with additional landscaping and other physical improvements, and we also want to begin some programs closely associated with the Veterans Memorial that will add value to our community. These undertakings require resources, and we anticipate opening additional fund-raising drives in the future in order to support these new and important initiatives.
We have closed our account with the Princeton Area Community Foundation and established a Dedicated Trust for the Montgomery Veterans Memorial. The Trust is administered by Montgomery Township, and is for the exclusive benefit of our Veterans Memorial. The Trust can accept bequests, legacies, and gifts, and the funds may not be used for any purpose other than to support the Montgomery Veterans Memorial. All donations to the Montgomery Veterans Memorial are placed in the Dedicated Trust and are considered contributions to a recognized charity under the provisions of Section 170 of the Internal Revenue Code. If you have any questions about reporting your donation you should consult your tax advisor. Should you wish to make a donation in support of our Memorial, please make your check payable to “Montgomery Veterans Memorial” and mail it to:
Michael Pitts, Chief Financial Officer
Montgomery Township Municipal Building
2261 Van Horne Road – Route 206 North
Belle Mead, NJ 08502
Montgomery Township will celebrate and honor its Veterans on Veterans Day, November 11, 2024 starting with a procession that will commence at 3:45 p.m. at the intersection of Harlingen Road and Devon Drive and end at Montgomery Veterans Park on Harlingen Road.
The procession will be followed by a brief ceremony starting at 4:00 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial. The celebration will include historical military displays, the Presentation of Colors by the Boy and Girl Scouts, recognition of our Veterans present, readings from Montgomery Lower Middle School students, musical selections by the Montgomery High School Band and the playing of Taps.
Speakers will include Pastor Christopher Heitkamp of the Harlingen Church; Mayor Neena Singh of Montgomery Township; Guest Speaker Assemblywoman Mitchelle Drulis, District 16; Lisa Romano, Principal of the Montgomery Township Lower Middle School; Mike Maloney of Rolling Thunder, and Dimitra Bairaktaris, Chairperson of the Montgomery Veterans Memorial Committee. Come join us!
In the case of inclement weather the ceremony will take place at the Montgomery Performing Arts Center (MPAC), located at the Montgomery High School, 1016 Route 206, Skillman. An announcement will be made on the main Township website and Facebook page to inform the community about any change.
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MONTGOMERY MEMORIAL DAY CEREMONY MAY 27, 2024
Montgomery Veterans Memorial Committee will host a Memorial Day Ceremony on Monday, May 27 at 9:00 a.m. at the Memorial located in Montgomery Veterans Memorial Park, next to the upper parking lot on Harlingen Road, Belle Mead. (See Google maps location.)
The Ceremony will feature opening and closing remarks from Veterans Committee Chairperson Dimitra Bairaktaris, the lowering of the flags by scouts, a message from a spiritual leader, reflections by Mayor Neena Singh, and the playing of Taps by a live bugler. Please join us to honor and remember our military service members who died while serving our country.
In the case of inclement weather the ceremony will take place in the chambers room in the Montgomery Municipal Center, 100 Community Drive, Skillman, NJ 08558. If a poor weather forecast dictates a decision to change the venue to indoors, an announcement will be made on the township website and Facebook page the week of the event.
LEARN ABOUT MONTGOMERY’S PURPLE HEART RECIPIENTS
Montgomery Township has the honorable distinction of being designated a Purple Heart Community. As part of the privilege of remembering and acknowledging the sacrifices of those who gave so much for the freedom and opportunities we have today, the Montgomery Veterans Memorial Committee (MVMC) has created a repository of stories of “Purple Heart in Our Community.”
Please visit our Purple Heart Recipients webpage (link in left menu) to learn the stories and see photos of these amazing veterans!
If this distinction includes you or someone in your family and you have not yet spoken with the MVMC, please contact us via email at: mvmc@twp.montgomery.nj.us or call (908) 359-8211 Ext. 2279.
VETERANS DAY
THURS., NOVEMBER 11, 2021
Procession 3:00 pm Ceremony 3:30pm
Montgomery Township will celebrate and honor our Veterans on Veterans Day, November 11th, 2021 starting with a Procession commencing at 3:00 p.m. at the intersection of Harlingen Road and Devon Drive and ending at theMontgomery Veterans Park on Harlingen Road. The Procession will be followed by a Ceremony starting at 3:30 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial.
The celebration will include Presentation of Colors by the Boy and Girl Scouts, readings from Montgomery Lower Middle School students, musical selections by the Montgomery High School Band, recognition of our Veterans present, Rifle Salute by the American Legion Post 339 and the playing of Taps. Speakers will include Reverend Christopher Heitkamp of the Harlingen Church; Mayor Devra Keenan of Montgomery Township; Guest Speaker Vincent Barragan, Captain, United States Army; Lisa Romano, Vice Principal of the Montgomery Township Lower Middle School; Mary McLoughlin, the Superintendent of Montgomery Township Schools; Mike Maloney of Rolling Thunder and Dimitra Bairaktaris, Chairperson of the Montgomery Veterans Memorial Committee. Come join us!
TO THE ATTENTION OF ALL MONTGOMERY MILITARY FAMILIES
Veterans Memorial Committee Seeking Purple Heart Recipients to Honor
Attention all US Military Veterans, Active-Duty Armed Service Members, and their Families residing within Montgomery Township: We are a designated Purple Heart Community, and as part of this honorable distinction the Montgomery Veterans Memorial Committee would like to recognize all Township residents who have earned or have had someone in their immediate family (including spouses and grandparents) who has earned the Purple Heart award.
Please contact: mvmc@twp.montgomery.nj.us or (908) 359-8211 Ext. 2279 so that we can identify and recognize all our Purple Heart recipients and their families. Thank you!
Memorial Day Ceremony May 31, 2021
The Montgomery Veterans Memorial Committee will be hosting a Memorial Day Ceremony on May 31st, 2021 at 9:00am at the Montgomery Veterans Memorial Park on Harlingen Road in Belle Mead, NJ. The Ceremony will feature lowering of the flags by Montgomery Township Boy and Girl Scouts, a spiritual message provided by Reverend Christopher Heitkamp, reflections provided by Montgomery Mayor Devra Keenan and the playing of Taps. Please join us on Memorial Day to honor and remember all our military service members who have died while serving our country.
In honor of Vietnam Veterans Memorial Day March 29th, the Montgomery Twp. Veterans Memorial Committee would like to share the following impactful video message:
VETERANS DAY CEREMONY 2020
VIRTUAL CEREMONY VIDEO, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11th
The Montgomery Veterans Memorial Committee has created a special Veterans Day 2020 Ceremony video which includes a narration of our ceremony using images, video messages, and more!
The video includes a narration of our ceremony by our committee chair using images for certain parts of our program and video messages from: Mayor Sadaf Jaffer, a spiritual leader, a guest speaker, a Rolling Thunder representative, and a special presentation from the Students of Montgomery Lower Middle School. A public in-person ceremony is not being held this year as a safety precaution due to the covid-19 pandemic. Please view above.
Monday, November 11 the Montgomery community came together to give back to those who have given so much in service to our country. U.S. service person, past and present, were honored at the Montgomery Veterans Memorial in Montgomery Veterans Park, Harlingen Road., Belle Mead.
The observance included Montgomery students reading their selected “Letters to Veterans.” 2019’s brief ceremony was held at 4:30 PM since it was a school day, so that more students and their families would be able to attend.
Please join us on Monday, November 11 to give back to those who have given so much in service to our country! All U.S. service person, past and present, will be honored. Held at the Montgomery Veterans Memorial in Montgomery Veterans Park, Harlingen Road., Belle Mead.
This year’s observance will include Montgomery students reading their selected “Letters to Veterans.” This year’s brief ceremony will be held at 4:30 PM since that Monday is a school day, so that more students and their families are able to attend. Due to the later hour, while the Montgomery High School Marching Band will play and first responders will be present, there will not be a procession first this year.
NewsComments Off on Memorial Day Flag Raising Mon., May 28thEdit
May102018
Come join us at 9:00 AM on Memorial Day, May 28, 2018, at the Montgomery Veterans Memorial in Montgomery Veterans Park for a brief flag raising ceremony to honor the servicemen and servicewomen who gave their lives serving the United States.
The Memorial is accessible from the Upper Parking Lot of the park and there is handicapped parking and also access to the nearby 9-11 Memorial.
The Montgomery Veterans Memorial is located adjacent to the upper parking lot of Montgomery Veterans Park, Harlingen Road, approx. 1/8 mile northeast of the corner of Harlingen and Devon Road, before Estates Blvd. Event presented by the Montgomery Twp. Veterans Memorial Committee. For further information, email the MVMC at mvmc@twp.montgomery.nj.us.
We are very sorry to share news of the passing of an integral member of the Montgomery Veterans Memorial Committee family, former Montgomery Mayor Robert Kress, on April 17, 2018. Please follow this link to his obituary: https://memorials.bakerpostfh.com/robert-kress/3487023/obituary.php
Mr. Kress is fondly remembered and greatly appreciated for his many, many years of active volunteer service to Montgomery Township. These included his tireless work from the very beginning in 1991 to fundraise for and with great joy at last, to oversee the construction of the Montgomery Veterans Memorial in 2011. He was also active in developing the Veterans Day Observance Program, a well-attended event honoring our veterans, which has been held every year since the Memorial was built on Veterans Day, November 11th. He will be missed.
Montgomery Veterans Memorial
Upper Parking Area
Montgomery Veterans Park
Harlingen Road
Belle Mead, NJ 08502
You’re invited! Rain or Shine!
In sharing President Eisenhower’s 1954 Veterans Day Proclamation – “In order to insure proper and widespread observance of this anniversary, all veterans, all veterans’ organizations, and the entire citizenry will wish to join hands in the common purpose” – The Montgomery Veterans Memorial Committee would like to invite everyone to our Special Veterans Day celebration this November 11th.
This Veterans Day marks the 7th Celebration at our Memorial, located in Montgomery Veterans Park off of Harlingen Road in Belle Mead.
Veterans Day is about Honoring Those Who Have Served and perhaps nowhere is that more important than in Montgomery!
Our very namesake, General Richard Montgomery, was a distinguished leader who served our country honorably and is widely recognized today as America’s first national hero after his courageous efforts in battle and falling on December 31st, 1775 in the Battle of Quebec. See: https://www.veteran.express/montgomery.express.html
The one hour Veterans Day event will include a procession and performance by the Montgomery High School Marching Band and first responders, presentation of the colors, patriotic speeches by local officials, and much more. Remarks will be offered by Congressman Leonard Lance, Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli, Joseph Kotch, a member of the Rolling Thunder veterans organization, Montgomery boy scout Srikar Surapaneni and girl scout Julia Garaffa.
This year will include something new: special costumed re-enactors from both the Civil War and WW II including a President Lincoln Impersonator in full dress. They will be set up near the Veterans Memorial from approximately 10:00am to 2:00pm – well before and after the day’s celebration and ceremony.
Additionally, the POW/MIA CHAIR OF HONOR will be on display. The perpetually empty chair helps everyone to remember those service members who have not yet returned home – some 82,429 unaccounted for as of October 2017.
For the Procession & Ceremony itself – Please plan to arrive by 10:45am as Harlingen Road leading to the upper parking lot in both directions will be closed for the parade.
All are welcome to this family friendly event! The Veterans Memorial as well as the 911 Memorial and all areas of Veterans Park are now fully accessible to those in wheelchairs and with walkers etc.
Source: Montgomery Veterans Memorial Committee
PURPLE HEART COMMUNITY DEDICATION
Tuesday, September 19, 2017
6:00 PM
Montgomery Twp. Municipal Building
2261 Rt. 206, Belle Mead, NJ 08502
This will be a brief ceremony to acknowledge Montgomery Township’s new designation as a “Purple Heart Community”. This designation recognizes the sacrifice of all military members who have been wounded or killed while serving the nation in a time of war. Members of the Military Order of the Purple Heart will be present.
Keynote speaker will be Brigadier General Michael L. Cunniff is Adjutant General of the New Jersey Army and Air National Guard.
Accepting the honor on behalf of Montgomery and reading a Township resolution will be Montgomery Mayor Ed Trzaska, Administrator Donato Nieman, and Township Clerk Donna Kukla.
This event is intentionally set on the anniversary of Township resident Ashley Henderson-Huff being killed in Iraq. [KIA: 9.19.06] The United States military awarded First Lt. Huff the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon. She was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and the Combat Action Badge. There will also be a special plaque and presentation honoring the memory of Lt. Henderson-Huff. This brave soldier spent a good portion of her childhood in Montgomery and attended Montgomery High School.
There will also be special plaques and presentations honoring the memories of both Lt. Ashley Henderson-Huff and SP4 Stephen H. Warner, a young war correspondent killed in action in Vietnam. Both of these brave soldiers hailed from Montgomery and attended Montgomery High School.
Although Ashley and Stephen were most the most recent, there are eight soldiers with stars next to their names on the Montgomery Veterans Memorial who were killed in action. The eight are (in alphabetical order):
9-11 Monument
Upper Parking Area
Montgomery Veterans Park
Harlingen Road
Belle Mead, NJ 08502
Two ‘open house’ hours of observance with MVMC volunteer staff available to answer questions will occur on Monday, September 11th at 9:45 AM and again at 7 PM. These two times are set up to foster remembrance and quiet reflection on the tragic events of the day as well as the bravery displayed by those who responded to the attack. This is also a time to foster awareness when those who do not remember that day can learn about the occurrence and how it impacted specific lives, their loved ones, and indeed, all of America. The recently improved 9-11 Memorial site is also available daily during park hours to any respectful visitors.
Montgomery Veterans Memorial
Upper Parking Area
Montgomery Veterans Park
Harlingen Road
Belle Mead, NJ 08502
Come join us Monday, May 29 – Memorial Day 2017 – at the Montgomery Veterans Memorial in Montgomery Veterans Park for an hour to honor the servicemen and servicewomen who gave their lives serving the United States. There will be a ceremony at the Veterans Memorial at 10:00 am, concluding at the nearby 911 Memorial. The event will be held rain or shine.
The Ceremony will include brief speeches by (in order) Donato Nieman, Township Administrator; Mark Caliguire, Somerset County Freeholder and Veterans Memorial Committee Advisor; Pat Graham, Veterans Memorial Committee Liaison; and Ed Trzaska, Mayor of Montgomery and Veterans Memorial Committee Advisor.
We will conclude at the 911 Memorial with a re-dedication and ceremonious flag-raising using a Capital-flown flag provided by Congressman Leonard Lance. Montgomery Township Resident Eric Bulger, Retired Police Officer who was at Ground Zero on 9 11 and the weeks following will also speak.
The 9-11 Memorial has been updated with a new patio area and landscaping through the EP Henry HEROSCAPING Program. All hardscaping materials have been donated by EP Henry and additional materials, to include labor and landscaping, have been donated through a team-effort by Montgomery Township Public Works, Montgomery Cub/Boy Scouts, and several local businesses.
The ceremony will last approximately 30 minutes and there will be a 30 minute open house of both memorials afterwards.
The POW/MIA CHAIR OF HONOR will be on display and members of the Veterans Memorial Committee will be on hand to answer questions.
Both memorials are accessible from the newly paved Upper Parking Lot of the park and there is handicapped parking and accessibility (see locator map).
The Montgomery Veterans Memorial is located adjacent to the upper parking lot of Montgomery Veterans Park, Harlingen Road, approx. 1/8 mile northeast of the corner of Harlingen and Devon Road, before Estates Blvd. (see locator map.) Presented by the Montgomery Twp. Veterans Memorial Committee. For further information, email the MVMC at mvmc@twp.montgomery.nj.us .
