KENT- Putnam’s Gold Star Mothers statue, the first of its kind in the United States, will be the centerpiece Sunday for a ceremony as America celebrates Gold Star Mother’s Day and Gold Star Family Day.
One hundred twenty women are members of the New York State Gold Star Mothers organization with more than 1,000 members enshrined in the National Gold Star Mothers.
In 1936, the U.S. Congress established the last Sunday in September as Gold Star Mothers Day. A Gold Star Mother is a mother who has lost a son or daughter in service to our country. The term refers to a long-standing tradition where military families place a flag on their home, with stars to indicate the number of family members serving. A Blue Star denotes a living service member and a Gold Star indicates a family member lost in the line of duty.
Putnam’s first Gold Star Mother, Hazel Martinez of Putnam Lake, passed away in July 2013. Martinez lost a son during the Vietnam War and devoted her life to assisting others as well as promoting the cause of veterans on both the local as well as regional level.
The Gold Star Mother’s statue depicts a woman stricken with grief and anguish after learning that her son was killed in battle.
Putnam’s Director of the Veterans Affairs Office Karl Rohde explained “when an active duty service member dies, his or her mother automatically becomes a Gold Star Mother–a distinction no mother wants but it’s one they wear proudly.”
The ceremony is open to all, veterans and non veterans alike, to show respect and appreciation for the sacrifice of our nation’s Gold Star Mothers.
The ceremony gets underway at 1 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial Park in Kent.
