At 98, A Cherry Hill Veteran Is Inviting Others To Pay Tribute To Other Vets

CHERRY HILL, NJ — May Brill, a 98-year-old Cherry Hill resident and a U.S. Navy veteran, spends a lot of her time making sure members of the military —particularly the women — are remembered and helped.

One of the upcoming items on Brill’s to-do list is organizing a luncheon, which is then followed by a speech by retired Air Force Colonel Nelson Mellitz of Cherry Hill titled "The Current State of the U.S. Military."

The two-pronged event takes place on May 20 at 12 p.m. at the Katz Jewish Community Center in Cherry Hill. Those wishing to attend and/or have a deceased veteran in their family be remembered with a lit candle during the event must call Brill at 856-429-8822 to make a reservation and/or provide the veteran's name, organizers said.

The luncheon and speech are free and open to the public, Brill said in an interview. Any donations received during the two-pronged event will support future events honoring veterans, according to a press release. There is a limit of two tickets per family and reservations are a must, Brill added.

“They have to talk to me to have a reservation,” she said. “They cannot just call and leave a message with their name and they cannot just call the center [to make a reservation].”

Organizing the luncheon and speech is one of several ways Brill said she fulfills her personal mission of making sure the role of the U.S. military plays in the United States’ history is remembered.

Besides the two-pronged event, she is also involved with the Vineland Veterans Memorial Home, Jewish War Veterans Post 126 and other veterans’ organizations, a press release said.

In addition, Brill told Patch she frequently speaks to children in school about the history of the U.S. Navy, with an emphasis on the role that women played in that branch of the military.

“I .... want to let the world know that they were women in the military, along with the men,” she said.

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