I visited a very special place last night - and met some very special people.
We took our 'Live From the Newsroom' show back out on the road to the sparkling Delaware County Veterans Memorial along West Chester Pike in Newtown Square.
If you have not visited, I suggest you do so. It really is a special place. Thanks to the work of Guy Fizzano, Linda Houldin and the other members of the Delaware County Veterans Memorial Association, and the largesse of developer Claude DeBotton, who donated the land on which the memorial sits, the county has a truly remarkable honor for those who paid the ultimate price for their country.
And what better time could there be to pay a visit than two days after Memorial Day?
Joining us last night were four very special guests. Gene Guarnere and his daughter Debi Rafferty detailed the 7-foot sculpture of their father and grandfather, the legendary 'Wild Bill' Guarnere, which will soon call the memorial home.
They will be on hand on June 6 as part of Newtown Square Days with a bust from the statue, which is expected to be completed and installed at the site in the fall.
Of course 'Wild Bill' Guarnere was the South Philly native who gained acclaim as one of the focuses of the HBO series 'Band of Brothers.' Guarnere's exploits as part of Easy Company in the 101st Airborne Division in World War II were the backbone of the book and TV series.
Also joining us last night was Janice Arty Hamilton, daughter of the late state representative and County Council chairman Mary Ann Arty. Hamilton detailed a very special event that will be part of the continuing mission of the memorial. It's called a Casket Flag Raising Ceremony. Mary Ann Arty, who served in the Army as a nurse, was one of the first to be so honored, along with Marine Sgt. James Fordyce, who was killed in action in a helicopter crash off the North Africa coast as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. His father, James Fordyce, joined us last night to talk about what the honor meant to him and his family.
When you listen to Hamilton and James Fordyce speak, you get a feel for just what a special place the memorial is.
If you missed the show, you can watch the replay here.
The plan now is to have these Casket Flag Raising events each month on the second Sunday.
In June, two more soldiers will be honored, appropriately enough on Flag Day, June 14.
U.S. Army veteran Anthony 'Tony' Fizzano and Paul Edwin White, the father of County Councilman Dave White, will have their flags raised at the site.
My thanks to all who took part in last night's show, including Barbara Ann Zippi, who as always was invaluable in setting things up. Barb even managed to get the storms to clear just in time for us to go on the air.
It was an honor to be able to use the show for one of the best projects in Delaware County.
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