Ocean City will salute veterans with banners honoring their service

Ocean City is starting a new program that will allow the families of military veterans to honor their loved ones by placing personalized banners in Veterans Memorial Park.

Mayor Jay Gillian announced the program Tuesday during the city’s annual Veterans Day observance at the Ocean City Tabernacle.

“We’ve been working on this program for a long time. Like everything we do in Ocean City, we want to make sure it’s first class,” Gillian said in keynote remarks at the ceremony.

Beginning Dec. 1, families of veterans with ties to Ocean City will be able to purchase banners to be displayed at Veterans Memorial Park, a place of reverence featuring memorials, monuments and green space on Wesley Avenue at Fifth Street.

Michael Allegretto, aide to the mayor, said the banners will include a photo of the veterans and a history of their military service.

He didn’t immediately know how much the banners will cost. There will also be an annual fee of $25 to display them in the park.

“We hope that this will be a great program,” Allegretto said in an interview.

    Banners honoring military veterans will be placed in Ocean City's Veterans Memorial Park.
  

Banners will be displayed from May to November, then taken down for the winter. They will be placed on poles lining the walkways in Veterans Memorial Park, Allegretto said.

City officials collaborated with Ocean City’s American Legion Post 524 and VFW Post 6650 for the program, Allegretto pointed out.

He noted that years of discussions preceded the formal approval of the banners for the park. The city had considered other possible locations for displaying the banners, including on the Boardwalk.

In 2021, the city experimented with “Honor Banners” lining the Boardwalk during early discussions. There were five Honor Banners on the Boardwalk that included the images of military heroes that were relatives of City Councilmen Pete Madden, Keith Hartzell and Jody Levchuk and former Councilman Bob Barr.

At that time, city officials had hoped to make the banners part of a broader program called “Honoring Our Veterans.” It was supposed to be a way for local families to honor their loved ones who served in the military, but the program never really panned out.

The five Honor Banners were displayed on decorative lamp posts lining the Boardwalk. They were removed after they became faded over the years.

Councilman Hartzell, the son of the late Paul Hartzell, a veteran of World War II and the Korean War, originally brought the idea of military banners to Ocean City in 2014. He was inspired by military banners he saw in Frackville, Pa., when he was there on a business trip. The Frackville downtown was filled with military banners.

More information about the new banners for Veterans Memorial Park will be available beginning in December on the city’s website and at the Mayor’s Office.

“One way Ocean City will honor our veterans is with a new banner program,” Gillian said.

    Mayor Jay Gillian announces the new military banner program during the ceremony.
  

During the ceremony, Gillian and other speakers honored the veterans for their sacrifices and service to the country dating all the way back to George Washington’s time.

“So today, on Veterans Day, we do more than say, ‘Thank you.’ We take a moment to reflect on the values our veterans lived and fought for – loyalty, unity, courage, and love of country. We honor those who came home and continue to serve their communities,” Gillian said.

“To all our veterans here today – and to those who couldn’t be with us – we owe you more than words can ever express. May we strive to live every day in a way that honors your example,” he continued.

During the ceremony, songs, prayers and words of praise for U.S. veterans from the Revolutionary War up to modern times filled the Tabernacle’s auditorium.

Poignant moments during the observance included a presentation of flags representing all branches of the U.S. military and the ceremonial laying of a memorial wreath.

    Flags are displayed representing all branches of the U.S. military.
  

Veterans were warmly applauded by the audience when they stood up in the Tabernacle auditorium to be recognized during the playing of a medley of songs from each branch of the military.

Bob Marzulli, commander of American Legion Post 524, said that one reason Veterans Day is commemorated each year is that “Americans never forget” the sacrifices that veterans have made through the nation’s history.

“It’s up to us to ensure that every veteran feels that his or her service to the country is appreciated by their fellow Americans. For many veterans, our nation was important enough to endure long separations from their families, miss the births of their children, freeze in sub-zero temperatures, roast in faraway deserts, lose limbs and, far too often, their lives,” Marzulli said.

Underscoring their dedication to the country, Marzulli noted that veterans often continue to be leaders in their communities after they finish their military service.

“When a veteran leaves the military, he or she is likely to be a key contributor to our communities – maybe as a schoolteacher, a construction worker or a first responder. They may be a business owner or a real estate agent or a medical professional,” he said.

“Regardless of occupation, veterans take their mission seriously,” he added.

    Bob Marzulli, commander of American Legion Post 524, says Veterans Day is commemorated every year because "Americans never forget" the sacrifices made by veterans.
  

Mike Morrissey, commander of VFW Post 6650, used his remarks to thank the Ocean City community “for supporting us in good times and bad.” A Vietnam veteran, he spoke with pride of his military service.

“My honorable discharge is my most prized possession, and it is a constant reminder that I made a promise, before God, that I will always serve my country,” Morrissey said.

“In return for the promises we made and the oaths we took and the things we did, it all earned us the great honor of being called a veteran forever,” he concluded.

    Mike Morrissey, commander of VFW Post 6650, tells the audience that his most prized possession is his honorable discharge from the military. 

    Ocean City police officers, led by Chief William Campbell, front row in foreground, attend the ceremony.

    Navy veteran Dave Hayes, of Ocean City, stands to be recognized during the playing of a medley of songs representing the military branches.