Wreath Placement Ceremony Held at Rainbow Monument

The Long Island chapter of the 42nd Rainbow Division Association conducted a wreath placement ceremony at the Rainbow Monument on Saturday, November 9 in honor of Veterans Day.

During the ceremony, Mayor Theresa Trouvé accepted a plaque and a Long Island chapter of the 42nd Infantry "Rainbow" Division medallion on behalf of the Village. "One could say that our Village is in a Renaissance moment for we have been restoring all the monuments that punctuate our Village, one by one. We turned first in this endeavor to our beloved Rainbow Division Monument," she said.

The Association also presented plaques to Village Administrator Ralph Suozzi and Public Works Superintendent Joseph DiFrancisco as a gesture of thanks and appreciation for what the Village did to restore the monument and improve the surrounding area. Trustees Stephen Makrinos and Colleen Foley were also in attendance.

“On behalf of the 42nd Division Association and the 69th Regiment, thank you for all that you have done to honor those who served and sacrificed in World War One and all who have served in the military during our nation's existence,” Bert Cunningham, Historian, 69th Regimental Headquarters, said.

Restoration efforts first began at the site back in 2017, as the Village prepared for the 100th anniversary celebration of Camp Mills, which was located in the southeast area of the Village during World War I. The monument is located on Saint James Street South. Camp Mills received troops from across the country for training and deployment to France. The famous 42nd (Rainbow) Division consisted of 26 Regiments from across the country and was the first full division to train there from August to late October 1917. Eventually, it fought in some of the key defensive and offensive battles of World War I.

The 69th Regiment, the “Fighting Sixty-Ninth” of Civil War fame, was designated the 165th Regiment at the time and represented New York State in the 42nd Division.

The area surrounding the Rainbow Monument was spruced up too, including the addition of lighting as well as a photocell for evening illumination. The new sidewalks that approach the monument from the north, east and west, plus the newly installed approach from the direction of the Eastern Property Owners’ Association’s donated flagpole to the south are now all the same width at the base of the monument - six feet by four feet.

This past July, Angelo De Vito, owner of A.D.V. & Sons Irrigation, was so pleased with all the work that the Village did to restore the monument and the surrounding grounds that he donated and personally installed an irrigation system at the site.