The 65th annual Christmas party of the New Hyde Park Veterans of Foreign War Post 8031 last week was, like previous celebrations, a somber occasion.
Mixed with the season’s good will was the memory of New Hyde Park residents who lost their lives during World War II at the Battle of the Bulge more than 67 years ago.
“It was 67 years ago today on Dec. 21 1944 Pfc. William Klies-Rath was killed in action at the age of 25,” New Hyde Park VFW commander Edward Smolenski said. “Also killed in the battle was Sgt. Peter Turko at age 27. In honor of our two dead and the other 19,000 killed in the battle of six weeks, we dedicate this ceremony to them.”
The New Hyde Park Veterans of Foreign War Post 8031 have been honoring the two soldiers during the Christmas season since the end of the war, undeterred by the toll taken by time on their members.
“Since World War II more than 90 percent of war veterans have died,” said Bill Hothan, New Hyde Park’s VFW adjutant,. “We only have 60 members and nine active members.”
Hothan said past ceremonies drew upwards of 150 people to the Elks Club on Lakeville Road, while this year’s event drew about a dozen veterans.
New Hyde Park VFW Chaplain, and former WWII B-29 bomber pilot Stan Sichel opened the ceremony with a prayer, followed by Smolenski honoring the two New Hyde Park residents who died at the battle, which took place in the forests of Belgium from Dec. 16, 1944 until Jan. 30, 1945.
A recording of taps and the national anthem was played following Smolenski’s words.
Hothan described the battle and how General Dwight D. Eisenhower handled the situation.
“They punched a 50-mile hole through American lines and Eisenhower had to make a tough choice,” he said. “It took the lives of 6,000 US troops to stop the Germans from advancing, and then they lost another 13,000 pushing the Germans back.”
Smolenski, who was born in New Hyde Park and served as a lieutenant in the Navy during the war, said he has seen a decline in the attention paid towards veteran ceremonies such as Veteran’s day and Memorial Day.
“I remember Veterans Day where Jericho Turnpike was just packed with people and you couldn’t even move past one another,” Smolenski said. “Now we barely get anyone who shows up to these events. I think the problem is that the allegiance in America has changed.”
Smolenski said New Hyde Park was “a small community” with a relatively small membership in its VFW. He said he hoped veterans coming back from Iraq would increase their membership by joining their ranks.
