New Haven Independent

Pride, gratitude and sorrow mixed at Gateway Community College’s Veterans’ Day commemoration Monday morning. About 50 students, faculty and staff at Gateway Community College gathered to remember soldiers who have died or survived both current and past wars.

Veterans’ Day used to be a holiday at Gateway. But three years ago, President Dorsey Kendrick explained, a new labor contract required faculty and professional staff to give up one holiday each semester. They chose Veterans’ Day for the fall. But rather than treat it as any other school day, Kendrick asked Robert Miles, director of career services, to organize a memorial event. He said 130 vets from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are currently enrolled at Gateway, along with a couple of hundred vets from previous wars who get tuition waivers to attend classes, “including, until last year, some World War II veterans.”

The commemoration began with the presentation of colors (pictured) and a remarkably melodic rendition of the notoriously difficult-to-sing “Star-Spangled Banner,” without benefit of any canned music or live accompaniment. Click here to listen.

Kendrick (pictured) welcomed those present and said Americans should never forget veterans. “And most importantly,” she added, to several murmurs of agreement, “let’s not forget freedom: freedom of speech, freedom of life choices, freedom to be able to get up today and determine our destiny. Let’s not forget that we love this country and we love all the people who make this great place our home.”

Then Richard Palinko of the school’s Veterans Office read the names of all the Connecticut soldiers and marines killed in Iraq (28) — including Thomas Vitagliano, Jason Hamil and Andre Craig, Jr., from New Haven — as well as the often-forgotten state residents who were killed in Afghanistan (five). Click here to listen to the names, each one followed by the sounding of a chime held by Les Delaney (pictured above).

At the end of the short program, a woman asked people to support three programs that are very important to veterans: the Wounded Warriors Project, which supports returning veterans in a variety of ways; Homes for Our Troops, which helps modify disabled vets’ existing homes or build new, handicapped accessible homes, and Patriot Express Loans, which enable veterans to start or expand small businesses.

Afterward, Les Delaney (pictured above), a Vietnam vet (Green Beret Special Forces) from Hamden who has held leadership positions in both the American Legion and the VFW, told a reporter his son is serving his third tour of duty in Iraq. Asked if his son had mixed feelings about his deployments, he said, “He was pretty good about going. He knew what he was getting into, as far as being a career soldier; he’s got 17 years in, as of yesterday, Nov. 11. He understands it’s his job, and he fulfills his job the best way he knows how.”

Asked if he had mixed feelings, he said, “My concern is that the boys are safe, and that they come back safe. A lot of them come back with, to me it’s like PTSD, because they’ve seen a lot and gone through a lot. I feel very sorry for them.”

Delaney said he himself had PTSD upon returning from Vietnam, and was “pretty messed up.” Click here to listen to him talk about his experience, how he thinks veterans’ groups help their returning brothers and sisters get the help they need, and why the federal government should do more to help vets.