American Legion Holds Parade in Wildwood

WILDWOOD — The New Jersey Department of the American Legion, America’s largest veteran’s service organization, held a festive parade on Sat., June 12 in conjunction with its 92nd annual convention at the Wildwoods Convention Center this past week.
Thousands of New Jersey Legionnaires attended the event, which featured color guards, marching bands and other ceremonial groups from Legion posts statewide, parading down Atlantic Avenue from North Wildwood through Wildwood and past the Byron Pennington Croker American Legion Post 184 at 4200 Atlantic Ave. The post is named in the memory of a fallen Wildwood son who died on Oct. 5, 1918 during WW1 in a campaign called “The Big Push.”
The annual parade and convention help to instill the Legion’s purposes “to God and Country,” which are spelled out in the preamble to its constitution:
“To uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States of America; to maintain law and order; to foster and perpetuate a one hundred percent Americanism; to preserve the memories and incidents of our associations in the great wars; to inculcate a sense of individual obligation to the community, state and nation; to combat the autocracy of both the classes and the masses; to make right the master of might; to promote peace and goodwill on earth; to safeguard and transmit to posterity the principles of justice, freedom and democracy; and, to consecrate and sanctify our comradeship by our devotion to mutual helpfulness.”
The American Legion was incorporated by Congress in 1919 as a patriotic veterans organization. Today, it is committed to mentoring and sponsorship of community youth programs, advocating patriotism and honor, promoting strong national security, and continued devotion to fellow service members and veterans.