Photo By Petty Officer 3rd Class Maxwell Higgins | 220503-N-MQ631-1046 GROTON, Conn. (May 4, 2022) Naval Submarine Base (SUBASE) New...... read more read more
Groton, Conn. – Naval Submarine Base New London (SUBASE) marked Navy Gold Star Awareness Month, May 2022, with the dedication of an inaugural Flag Garden on the base, Tuesday, May 3.
The dedication ceremony included a proclamation signing and the participation of U.S Congressman Joe Courtney (2nd-Conn.) and Helen Keiser-Pedersen, President of the Connecticut Department of American Gold Star Mothers.
To complete the Flag Garden, Keiser-Pederson and several other Gold Star Family members planted flags in honor of their fallen loved ones.
The garden will stand throughout the entire month of May, and its nearly 200 flags represent fallen service members in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont, and their Gold Star Families who are currently part of the Navy Gold Star Program in New England and New York.
“My personal experience with the knock on the door, came March 11, 2013,” said Keiser-Pederson. Her son, 28-year-old Army Capt. Andrew Michael Pedersen-Keel of Madison, Connecticut, was killed in Afghanistan, and “that day I became a gold star mother.”
The "star" tradition began in WWI when white service flags were displayed from homes, business, schools, and churches. The flags indicated by the use of a blue star, each active service member in the U.S. Military. A gold star stitched over a blue star showed the nation those who had given their lives for their country, and it highlighted the devotion and pride of those left behind.
Courtney echoed the sentiments of Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark A. Milley, highlighting that “there is nothing more important or sacred,” than to honor those that have fallen in the defense of the nation and their families.
April Tischler, the SUBASE and New England Navy Gold Star program coordinator, said that Veterans Day and Memorial Day "allow us to honor our men and women in uniform who have put themselves in harm's way to defend the people they love and the land they cherish." But Gold Star events like the base’s inaugural flag garden, “allow us as a grateful nation to come together in another way...to honor the families who keep the memory of our fallen service members - their loved ones, burning bright.”
Capt. Kenneth M. Curtin Jr., SUBASE Commanding Officer, signed a proclamation declaring May as “Gold Star Awareness Month” on the base, and urging all to help observe, remember, and act in support of Gold Star Families.
“Our Navy and Submarine Base New London understand the service, sacrifice and challenges faced by our military members and families,” said Curtin. “And with [April Tischler’s] counsel and grateful hearts, we continue to do what we can to honor and make a difference for our Gold Star Families. This inaugural Flag Garden is one way, though we consider it a small way, and may its presence remind us all that freedom isn’t free.”
The Navy Gold Star Program has dedicated the month of May as Gold Star Awareness Month since 2015. National Gold Star Spouses Day is April 5, and National Gold Star Mother's and Family's Day is observed annually on the last Sunday in September.
The SUBASE Flag Garden will be on display throughout the month of May in the park area between Grayling Ave. and Shark Blvd., just after entering the base’s Main Gate.
| Date Taken: | 05.17.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 05.17.2022 14:03 |
| Story ID: | 420912 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 85 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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