Wildwood to Dedicate POW Chair of Honor
Wildwood to Dedicate POW Chair of Honor!
Press Release:
The City of Wildwood is proud to announce a dedication ceremony of POW Chairs of Honor Thursday, May 16th at 3 PM in the Commissioner’s Meeting Room at City Hall. The POW chair will remain on display at City Hall as a permanent fixture, and a second, folding chair will be displayed at every City sponsored event. Mayor Ernie Troiano, Jr. and Vietnam veteran and POW-MIA National Chair of Honor representative Patrick J. Hughes have been in discussions about the POW Chair of Honor project for the past year.
POW Chairs are displayed in remembrance of the over 82,000 soldiers unaccounted for since World War II. The POW chairs are found around the country on public displays in locations varying from sports stadiums to government buildings. Hughes is the national photographer for Rolling Thunder, the motorcycle group advocating for POW and MIA service members. As a representative of the project, he has been involved with close to one hundred chair dedications, and chose Wildwood for its dedication to patriotism and veterans.
Mayor Ernie Troiano, Jr. believes the chair will be a strong addition to Wildwood, joining the Doughboy Memorial to Memory Lane, to the Vietnam Memorial Wall, the POW-MIA monument, the Korean monument and the monument to those who continue to die from diseases of the Vietnam War. The portable chair at City events will increase the awareness of POW KIA service members and offer tribute to the heroism of all service members.
“We are honored to have the chair as a permanent reminder of the bravery and gallantry of our American soldiers who fought for the liberty and freedoms that at times we take for granted. This will be a permanent reminder that these men and women should never be forgotten. It an honor beyond belief. “ said Mayor Troiano.
The permanent POW Chair of Honor will be displayed in the Commissioner’s Meeting Room on a handmade platform created by Troiano’s Department of Beach Services, will be secured behind velvet ropes, and will be joined by the American, POW-MIA, KIA, State of NJ and City of Wildwood flags. A plaque will be affixed to the display commemorating the dedication. The portable chair will be displayed at events wand was purchased from Hussey Seating, the maker of a wide range of POW chairs.
Entry into the dedication ceremony begins at 2:30 PM, and is open to the public.
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