Lansford will recognize hometown heroes
Joey Nichols served his country in Vietnam, and has continued his service around the Lansford area as a dedicated volunteer on behalf of American Legion Post 123.
So when the Legion Post decided to make Hometown Hero banners for the town this year, they chose to sponsor Nichols as one of the first veterans to be recognized.
“He does a lot of behind the scenes work for the Legion. He’s always there to support us in any way he can,” said Christine LeClair, 1st Vice Commander for Post 123.
For the first time, Lansford is planning to get in on the popular trend of recognizing local veterans with banners in town. The banners will hang around the business district and along the path of the 2018 Carbon County Veterans Day Parade, which is returning to the borough this year.
LeClair said the Legion decided it would add to the spectacle of the parade to erect banners recognizing the heroes of the Lansford area.
“We thought it would be awesome to have all of this come together and culminate for Veterans Day,” she said.
LeClair informed borough council of the plans last week. Council President Jared Soto said it’s a great opportunity to recognize veterans, and his family plans to buy one to recognize his late uncle, a Vietnam War veteran.
“The banner will not only recognize his service in the military, but will put a smile on the faces of friends and family of whom he has had an impact on,” Soto said.
The banners will feature the name and photo of the veteran, the highest medal they received, and the name of the sponsor. If the veteran received a Purple Heart, the Legion is asking sponsors to submit a DD 214 discharge paper to verify the award.
Photos will be delivered by hand to the company making the banners, not mailed, so that no one’s priceless family photo is damaged.
The banners are expected to go up in late summer, and hang through the parade. For three years after that, they’ll hang from Memorial Day through Veterans Day. At the end of the third year, in 2021, they’ll be returned to the sponsor.
The location of the banners hasn’t been finalized. Lansford Alive is also planning to hang banners in town this summer, and LeClair said the two organizations will work together. A group in nearby Coaldale Borough is also planning on putting up banners in 2018.
Applications are available at the Legion, and will be accepted now through Aug. 1. There’s a limited number of spots, about 50 for the first round, but more banners could be coming in the future, LeClair said.
Carbon has more than 3,000 veterans between 18-64, and many of them live in the Lansford area. The county has the third-highest number of veterans per capita in Pennsylvania, according to state statistics.
