veteranscouncil2006

2006

Veterans searching for more names
Monday, January 30, 2006

LEWISTON - The Lewiston Auburn Veterans Council is looking for about 50 more veterans applications to complete the 10th "Memorial Stone" that will be placed in Veterans Park. If they are received by May 1st, the council will be able to unveil that new stone following the Memorial Day Parade and ceremony on Saturday, May 27.

The parade will start at 9:30 a.m. from Kennedy Park and will go through Auburn, ending at Veterans Park on Main Street in Lewiston, where the ceremony will be held.

Anyone needing applications for an individual name on the 10th stone, as well as information concerning the parade and ceremony, should contact Chairman Bert Dutil.

The council is inviting all military units, bands, color guards, veterans, fraternal organizations, Boy and Girl Scouts and youth groups to sign up for the parade.

Dutil can be reached at 786-2305 or 454 Meadowview Park, Lewiston, ME 04240.

Tribute to Soldiers
Monday, July 24, 2006
By Daniel Hartill, Staff Writer

LEWISTON - Nancy Cunningham imagined a place where she could sit and remember her son, Daniel.
Alone, she could meditate or just recall the boy who grew up to be a soldier. Then she figured others might want to remember her son, one of two Lewiston men killed in Iraq.
She came up with a plan.
For just under $4,000, two stone monument benches could be erected at Veterans Memorial Park, one for Daniel and one for Shawn Dostie, who was also killed in Iraq.

"It would be a place to sit, think, picnic or whatever," Cunningham said.
All she needed was the money - and that's on its way.
Cunningham has joined with Shawn's parents, Robert and Delaine Fugere, and Lewiston Representative Elaine Makas to create the Danny and Shawn Memorial Fund.
The group is circulating fliers in the downtown area, promoting the fund and a benefit dinner scheduled for August 11th.
The dinner will feature spaghetti donated by Governor John Baldacci's family business, Mama Baldacci's Restaurant, based in Bangor.
The goal is to raise enough money to cover the whole cost of both benches, said Bert

They would join a growing number of monuments in the park, including 10 obelisks and a row of four other benches. They are engraved with the names of local soldiers whose sacrifices go back to the Spanish-American War.
By contrast, it has been only seven months since Dostie died.

The 32-year-old Army soldier was killed in December 2005 when a homemade bomb struck his Humvee. Dostie, who was married and had two small children, was buried in January at Arlington National Cemetery.

"It's easier," said his mom, Delaine. "We're all still struggling, though."
Cunningham was killed just days after the war started.
On April 4, 2003, he was one of three soldiers who were riding in a Humvee when it plunged into a ravine, drowning them.
Though it's been more than three years, grief often strikes his mom.

"I go to the cemetery as often as I can," Nancy Cunningham said. "But I don't get there enough."
She has no car and must wait for a family member to drive her. A stone bench would give her a closer place to remember Daniel, to meditate on how his life changed hers.
It would also be something permanent, she said.
Since Daniel's death, his alma mater, Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School, has offered a scholarship in his name.
But as time goes by, donations have dwindled.
"It's getting harder and harder to gather the money," she said. "People forget too soon."

Local veterans observe anniversary
Friday, July 28, 2006
By Bonnie Washuk, Staff Writer

LEWISTON - Until Thursday, local vets had never marked the end of the Korean War.
A noon ceremony at Veterans Memorial Park changed that.
Bert Dutil, 76, and 10 other Korean War veterans were joined by about 15 others who came to honor the veterans who served in the war that ended July 27, 1953.
Dutil was a 20-year-old soldier in the United States Army in 1952 when he was sent to defend South Korea from the spread of communism.

"It was hard, especially on the front line," he said. After about a month of fighting he was pulled off the front line because French interpreters were needed. He spoke French. From that point he worked for the United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission.

"I was there when they signed the armistice," Dutil said. Standing in front of a veterans monument, Dutil recited a "Freedom Isn't Free" poem.

The phrase "freedom isn't free" was a motto for Korean War soldiers, Dutil said.

Joseph Paradis, 76, of Lewiston, also a Korean War veteran, spoke briefly, recalling that 54,246 American soldiers died in the war. Another 103,284 were wounded.
He was one of the wounded.
Paradis was in Korea from 1950-53. As a boy, he was in need of a home, and a good family took him in. At age 17, he wanted to give back, so he joined the Army.
In Korea he was seriously wounded, captured and kept as a prisoner of war.

Paradis declined to talk about that.
"I'm still having a hard time sleeping," he said.

"I'm on medication for that. It's rough. But I keep my mouth shut, and I live through it."
He came out of the war disabled from his wounds. "I learned 18 years ago I put everything to sleep, and I feel better." He keeps a low profile and does for others.

"You can never do enough for veterans."

Raymond Lemieux of Lewiston had just turned 18 in 1953. He was a Marine, about to be deployed to Korea. Suddenly, instead of being sent to war, he was transferred to a supply base. "I was kind of disappointed and relieved at the same time," he said.
The Korean War wasn't popular back home, Lemieux said. People didn't want any part of it. "That's probably one of the reasons they call it "the forgotten war.'"

Bill Bradbury, 45, of Lewiston, was the youngest veteran at the ceremony. He brought his 7-year-old son. Bradbury served in the United States Navy during the Iran hostage crisis in 1979, on a ship a mile from Iran.
He came Thursday "because they don't do enough for Korean veterans.

They don't do enough for veterans, period."
Bradbury wants people to remember that Korean War soldiers are still missing and to be aware of the sacrifices war demands. As to the current war in Iraq, Bradbury believes it's too political. "It's turning out to be a quagmire, like Vietnam."
Thursday's ceremony was small, but it meant a lot to many people, Dutil said.
Looking at the small crowd he asked, "How many were in Korea?"
Eleven men, now old, raised their hands.
"Thank you," Dutil said.

Unveiling Ceremony to recall War Casualties
Monday, September 25, 2006

Sergeant First Class Shawn C. Dostie, 32, of Granite City, Illinois, died in Baghdad, Iraq, on December 30, 2005, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his humvee during patrol operations. Dostie was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

Army SPC Daniel Francis Cunningham, 33, of Lewiston, Maine, died: April 4, 2003, Unit: 41st Field Artillery Regiment, Fort Stewart, Georgia. Incident: Killed when his vehicle fell into a ravine.

LEWISTON - Veterans plan to honor the city's two fallen soldiers killed in Iraq, Daniel Cunningham and Shawn Dostie, in a dedication at Lewiston's Veterans Park.
The hour-long ceremony will include the unveiling of two stone benches honoring the men.
The benches were paid for by a fundraiser last month, including a raffle and dinner, that brought in more than $5,000.
Cunningham was killed in April 2003, just days after the start of the war. He was one of three soldiers who were riding in a Humvee when it plunged into a ravine, drowning them.
Dostie was killed last December, when a homemade bomb struck his Humvee.
Relatives of both men are expected to attend, along with an American Legion color guard and a representative of the Maine Chapter of Gold Star Mothers.
The organization is open to mothers of soldiers killed in war.
"The group used to be powerful in Lewiston," said Bert Dutil, chairman of the L&A Veterans council, which is organizing the event.
Thelma Brooks, president of Maine's group, plans to attend.
"We will be honoring the Gold Star Mothers with a star with yellow flowers and a plaque," Dutil said.
Attendees will be given information about the group and details on how to add the name of a veteran to the growing number of stone obelisks forming a semicircle around the riverside park.
"We are working on our 11th stone," said Dutil, whose name is listed as a Korean War veteran. "Each side has 216 names, and we have one side almost full. We expect to finish this stone for next Memorial Day."

Veterans ceremony to honor mothers, two fallen soldiers
Tuesday, September 26, 2006

LEWISTON - The L and A Veterans Council will hold a ceremony in Veterans Park, Main Street, at 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 30, to honor Gold Star Mothers and unveil two benches.The Gold Star Mothers will be honored with a star with yellow flowers and a plaque describing who can be or presently is a Gold Star Mother. Following that the council will unveil and dedicate two new benches in honor of Sgt. Daniel F. Cunningham Jr. and Sgt. Shawn C. Dostie, who died in Iraq. Invited guest includes a representative from the state chapter of the Gold Star Mothers, the two mayors and other guests. All mothers who lost a son or daughter in the military are invited to the special dedication. People are asked to bring their own chairs as the ceremony will probably last over an hour, said Bert Dutil, chairman. There will be displays, flyers and application for those who want a name added to the 11th stone. All veterans posts and auxiliaries are invited to attend with their post or auxiliary flag to be added to the National Colors.
There is parking on either side of the park, located at the Lewiston entrance to the Longley Bridge. For more information, call Dutil at 786-2305.

Council Planning Veterans Musical Tribute
Monday, October 23, 2006

LEWISTON - The Lewiston AuburnVeterans Council will sponsor the annual Musical Tribute to Veterans at 10 a.m. Saturday, November 11th, at the Lewiston Armory, Central Avenue. The event will feature the Just Us entertainers pictured above from left, Debbie Poulin, Lorraine Giasson, Norm Laplante and Sue Rouleau.

Participants, who will pass in review, will include military, veterans organizations and auxiliaries, fraternal, social and youth organizations and high school bands. Both mayors have been invited as well as other dignitaries. To be added to the line-up, contact Bert Dutil, chairman of the Veterans Council, at 786-2305.

Servicemen honored at benches' unveiling
Friday, December 8, 2006

LEWISTON - Two new polished granite benches were unveiled recently at Veterans Memorial Park, Main Street, in honor of Sgt. Dan Cunningham and SFC Shawn Dostie. The seats were unveiled by members of the Cunningham and Dostie families. The park now has six benches. At the present time the L and A Veterans Council is seeking more names to be added to an 11th memorial stone, which they hope to unveil on Memorial Day weekend, said Chairman Bert Dutil. Anyone who has been or who is presently in the military can have their name on a stone.

The cost is $30 a name. Dutil said those interested may call or write for an application and must be able to prove they were in the military by sending with the application a copy of the discharge papers or a DD210. While the cost for a bench is $2,000, the cost for a name is $200. Dutil said anyone can have their name placed on a bench for that amount. The treasurer also has gift cards available. For more information, contact Georgette "Gerry" Cain at 782-6621 or Dutil at 786-2305.

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