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The meticulous pace of the taps filled the American Armor Museum at Old Bethpage at eleven o'clock on Sunday morning, a hundred years after the guns were silenced on the western front of Europe.
Standing in the middle of barrels of floats and draped flags, the bugle lowered his instrument. The crowd of about 200 people then shared a minute of silence on Veterans Day, a tribute to those who served and those who made the ultimate sacrifice – from Belleau to Bagram.
Armistice Day, commemorating the end of the First World War on November 11, 1918, became Veterans Day, to honor the soldiers who served in the country's wars ever since.
"This is a very important day," said Joseph Koloski, a retired insurance auditor who attended the event Sunday. "All who served have sacrificed much. … We have our freedom because of the people who lost their lives and the people who served. "
Koloski said that the country's attitude towards veterans had changed since he was ridiculed on his return from the Vietnam War, where he had served in the military police.
Today, foreigners often thank military uniforms for serving the country.
"We did not understand that," he said. "It has changed for the better."
"Every time I see a veteran from Vietnam, I always say," Welcome home, my brother, "Koloski said.
The founder and president of the museum, Lawrence Kadish, told the crowd that the mission of the institution was not "to glorify the war, but to honor our citizen soldiers, those who defended us enemies of freedom , freedom, diversity and peace ".
Kadish said that he was too young to fight during World War II, but he learned the importance of fighting in the streets of Brooklyn where he grew up.
"If they feel weak, they will attack you," Kadish said. "We must therefore support our military. … it's the best deterrent against aggressive nations. "
The names of more than five dozen Long Islanders who lost their lives in combat during World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan were read during the ceremony. The museum has also awarded scholarships to local scouts for writing veterans' essays. Catherine Pizzardi, 11, of Mineola, won the first prize, a $ 5,000 cash prize for an essay she wrote based on interviews with World War II veterans and veterans. Vietnam.
The Nassau County Executive, Laura Curran, told the crowd that she had just returned from Berlin, where she had participated in Kristallnacht's 80th anniversary commemorations, a night of widespread violence against Jews in Nazi Germany, which would have marked the beginning of the Holocaust.
"It reminded me how important it is to defend democracy, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, everything we take for granted," said Curran.
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