North Wildwood Veterans Remember Pearl Harbor Day

NORTH WILDWOOD – Two World War II Army veterans stood shoulder-to-shoulder Dec. 7 by the seawall at St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church. They joined other veterans, led by Joseph A. Orlando, commander, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5941, to pay tribute to the 2,335 Americans killed and 1,143 wounded in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Dec. 7, 1941.
Robert Farrell, 86, of Court House and Al Mouklas, 90, of North Wildwood, rendered a smart military salute as Dolly Magee led singing of the national anthem. Both removed their cars as Post Chaplain Bob Powell offered a prayer for those who lost their lives that fateful Sunday morning 72 years ago and an ocean away from where he stood
Mouklas enlisted three days after the attack that landed the United States in the Second World War.
Farrell was drafted toward the war’s end, and saw service in Saipan and Guam. Assigned to the Engineers, Farrell served in grave registration, a task he admitted was nothing of which to be proud, but one that had to be done.
Participating in the ceremony were veterans from wars from Korea to Vietnam.
Assemblyman Robert Andrzejczak, (D-1st) an Army veteran, told the gathering he was stationed in Hawaii, and had seen Pearl Harbor.
He likened the attack on Pearl Harbor to his generation’s Sept. 11, 2001 as a “day that crushed the entire nation.” Andrzejczak said the event helped to instill patriotism into the nation, and does, to this day, as people remember the Pearl Harbor veterans.
Without veterans and the sacrifices they made, he said, the nation would not enjoy the fruits of freedom. He also looked at those in Congress who would cut the defense budget and reduce veterans’ benefits and said those actions were “mind boggling.” He reminded the crowd the nation must be kept strong. “We owe our veterans everything,” said Andrzejczak.
Sen. Jeff VanDrew (D-1st) noted the chilly wind that blew off the sea that made those in attendance uncomfortable. “It is good we feel cold because it helps us understand, a mere fraction of what those veterans went through,” he said.
Looking over 72 years, VanDrew said the day reminds the nation’s foes, “Never count America out.”
Mayor William Henfey used the occasion to remind residents that “In three weeks, Patrick Rosenello will become mayor. He is a great man and will be a tremendous leader.”
Rosenello joined Henfey as Van Drew recalled how tirelessly Henfey had worked for the city’s betterment, and how the two had worked in bipartisan ways to benefit the city’s residents.