Veterans honored in two Holyoke virtual ceremonies

Nov. 16, 2020 | Miasha Lee

HOLYOKE –  In honor of Veteran's Day, the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home Coalition as well as the United Veterans of Holyoke and Veteran Services created online tributes to veterans who not only served the country, but also died from COVID-19 and other causes during the pandemic.

With consent from family members of the veterans, the Coalition included images, a short narrative and a link to a funeral notice or obituary for the public to learn about the veteran’s lives and service to the nation.

"We believe it's important to ensure that as a community we continue to honor and remember the legacy of those veterans who passed away," said Member John Paradis, one of a team of five people that worked on the tribute presentation.

As he continued, "It's certainly important on Veteran's Day, but really every day of the year we as citizens should pay our respect to our veterans, but in particular this year considering what happened at Soldiers' Home in Holyoke we believe it's important to keep the memory of those who passed away alive and celebrate their lives. We hope our tribute page will do just that; convey our love, respect and admiration for all the veterans who died during the pandemic."

The Coalition was formed in June this year when a group of family members of veterans who died of COVID-19 approached members of the veteran community in Western Massachusetts to advocate for significant improvements to the current Soldiers’ Home.

To date, the Coalition has 32 veterans listed on the page who died from COVID-19 while under the care of the Soldiers’ Home and another five veterans who died from other causes under the Soldiers' Home, as well as one current resident of the Home.

"We're hoping through this tribute that the community can get a better sense of what it means to serve and also that they all lived accomplished lives after their military service," Paradis replied. "This is our small way of paying homage to them and what they meant to us in Western Massachusetts."

The Coalition tribute can be viewed at www.holyokesoldiershomecoalition.org/in-tribute.

Family members of any veteran who died from COVID-19 while under the care of the Soldiers’ Home in Holyoke or of current residents who would like the veteran’s name listed can email the Coalition at holyokesoldiershomecoalition@gmail.com.  

The United Veterans of Holyoke and Veteran Services in collaboration with Holyoke Media virtually streamed their 2020 Veteran's Day ceremony with War Memorial Commissioner Christopher C. Sims as the Master of Ceremonies.

"It's crucial that we take in the fabric of what it is to be a veteran and why it's important to celebrate them," said Jesus Pereira, director of Veteran Services. "If it wasn't for service members who protected our Constitution and our way of life, we would of had a different way of living. We are who are today based off of those who served and fought for us in the past."

Special highlights included the awarding of Public Safety of the Year, Citizen of the Year and Veteran of the Year.

The ceremony ended with the bell ringing commemorating the soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the country.

"With all the turmoil in the last couple of years, we forgot that there are things to celebrate," Pereira mentioned. "There are days that we take to recognize people who have served our country and I think that's an easy united front that we can all stand by."

He added, "I live in this country. I grew up in this city and I served this country, so there's always a reminder out there that anything is really achievable in this country. As long as you put your mind to it and use the resources that are available."

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