Heroes Honored In Southold Town On Veterans Day

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SOUTHOLD, NY— Residents will gather Wednesday to pay tribute to the nation's heroes at an annual Veteran's Day ceremony in Southold.

The event takes place at the American Legion Griswold Terry Glover Post 803, located at 51655 Main Road in Southold, beginning at 11 a.m.

Joining members of the Post will be local officials and cadets from the NJROTC program.

Following the ceremony, there will be a complimentary breakfast for veterans inside the Legion Hall provided by the Southold Rotary Club.

In past years, former Commander Charles Sanders pointed out a new tradition that was born in Southold in 2021 for Veterans Day when a 9/11 memorial Swamp White Oak sapling was planted, derived directly from the trees located at the 9/11 memorial in New York City.

A family who lives in New York City collected the Swamp White Oak acorns on their daily walks by the World Trade Center Memorial during the pandemic, he explained. "They nurtured the acorns in their apartment and found great meaning in watching them sprout," Sanders said.

Next, in the summer of 2020, they gave a sprout to a North Fork family, Peter, Claire and Jack, who adopted the seedling and nurtured it, before offering it to the American Legion — and the idea for a permanent memorial was conceived, Sanders said, at the time.

The reason the Swamp White Oaks were chosen for the 9/11 Memorial, he said, was that they are native to all three spots impacted by the attacks, including New York City, Virginia, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

Sanders said it was important to teach children about 9/11.

As the tree grows, pavers will honor new veterans every year.

At the time, Sanders thanked the veterans "who gave me the freedom to speak freely. . . We live in America where we are able to have the freedom of speech, the freedom of religion, the freedom to be able to say what you think, even if it ticks off someone else in your neighborhood. We have the freedom in the United States because of what these men and women have done for us."