Emotional Memorial Day Ceremony in Caledonia

Gold Star Mother escorted by Marine grandson and
wounded war vet visits home to observe Memorial Day

   A parade of military men past and present marched in cadence to the patriotic beat of Kelley’s Heroes and the Cal-Mum High School Marching band as it made its way along North Street to the Matthew Cleary Post War Memorial where a ceremony was held.

   This Memorial Day was very emotional for those who attended. U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Kris Mitchell, home in Caledonia for the weekend to observe Memorial Day with his family, proudly attended. Mitchell is decorated with two Purple Hearts after being wounded three times while serving in Iraq. He is currently receiving outpatient treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. where he lives with his family.

   Each year Gold Star Mother Cecil Knickerbocker of Caledonia places a wreath at the war memorial monument to honor her son, and all others, who gave their lives, the ultimate sacrifice for America. This year, she was proudly escorted to the war memorial by her grandson, PFC Brandon Knickerbocker. The crowd in attendance was silent as the two of them, arm in arm, placed the wreath at the monument, turned and saluted the memory of Butch Knickerbocker and the other men from Caledonia who died in service to their country.

   Vietnam Veteran Joe Caluorie and WWII Veteran Stan Rychlicki also placed wreaths at the war memorial.

   Post Commander Mel Keenan announced the winners of the essay contest, "What Memorial Day Means to Me", held for CMCS High School students. Russell Schneider took third place; James Kemnitz took second place and David Nasradinaj took first place and read his essay.

   Sons of the American Legion held a poster contest for CM Elementary School students. SAL Squadron Adjutant Steve Pullyblank announced the winners: Megan Bullard, Dylan Coyle, Abigail Spear and Rob Voos.

   The Guest Speaker for the ceremony was Major General Dennis Lutz. MG Lutz graduated from the University of Cincinnati in 1973 and was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the US Army Signal Corps. In 1976, MG Lutz transitioned into the Army Reserve. Over the next 15 years he served in a variety of signal and staff assignments in the Rochester and Syracuse areas.

   In June 2002 he assumed command of the 359th Signal Brigade, which had relocated from Syracuse to Ft. Gordon, Georgia. In July 2005 he assumed command of 335th Theater Signal Command and deployed forward into the Southwest Asia Theater in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, he returned in September 2006 to the 335th Headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia.

   MG Lutz is a graduate of the Signal Officers Basic and Advanced Courses, the Command and General Staff College, and the US Army War College. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati, a Master's Degree in Business Administration from Xavier University, and a Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering from the Rochester Institute of Technology.

   His awards include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, Meritorious Service Medal (4 OLC), the Army Commendation Medal (1 OLC), the Army Achievement Medal, and the parachutist badge.

   Following the guest speaker, Commander Keenan presented Matthew Cleary Post member Ray Mancuso with a 50-year continuous service award and Ladies Auxiliary President Debbie Davis presented the post with a Gold Star Mother plaque.

   Earlier this year, the Ladies Auxiliary sponsored a flag quilt project in conjunction with CM Elementary School. A group of community volunteers worked with the elementary students and auxiliary members to produce six flag quilts to be donated to recovering veterans at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. There were over 100 photographs on display at the Memorial Day ceremony of the daylong flag quilt project and the visit to Walter Reed to deliver the quilts. The fifty stars on each quilt were represented by a child’s fingerprint. The thirteen stripes were represented by the horizontal handprint of each student.