May 27, 2003 By Bryan O'Keefe For The 3 min read

Despite chilly temperatures and overcast skies, local veterans and residents gathered Monday to celebrate Memorial Day and honor those soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. The day began with an hour-long service at Sylvan Heights Cemetery in Uniontown. Victor Kozares, officer in charge of the service and commander of the United War Veterans of Uniontown, began the service by telling the crowd that Memorial Day was an occasion to “pay tribute and express our reverence for all veterans.”

Uniontown Mayor Jim Sileo spoke at the ceremony and said that soldiers who died in battle deserved to be honored because they sacrificed their lives for the freedom that we enjoy on a daily basis.

“Today is an important day for all of us. We must never forget those who unselfishly gave their lives for freedom or otherwise they will have died in vain,” Sileo said.

Sileo said that words could not describe his appreciation for veterans and that veterans should be an inspiration for everyone. “My expression of thanks simply can not be put into words. It is a special feeling all of us have in our hearts,” Sileo said.

“May all Americans draw inspiration from the magnitude of those who have served and those who gave the ultimate sacrifice,” Sileo added.

The principle speaker for this year’s service was Walter Gertz from the United States Coast Guard. Gertz served in the Korean War and recounted several of his combat experiences. Gertz vividly remembered that when he was called to duty he was not sure he would ever return home.

“As we watched the San Diego skyline, we all wondered if this was our last glimpse of America. And for many of my fellow Marines it was,” Gertz said.

In reflecting on his service, Gertz said that he hopes peace reigns for future generations.

“Hopefully the Almighty will erase greed and intolerance from the hearts of mankind. My wish this day is for peace on Earth,” Gertz said.

The VFW Band was also on-hand to perform several selections and flags were placed in markers for the various wars from the American Revolution to the Persian Gulf War.

Following the Sylvan Heights ceremony, VFW Post 47 held a Memorial Day service in downtown Uniontown at the doughboy statue. Wreaths and flowers were laid on the statue to remember veterans and a gun salute was fired.

Overall, event organizers and residents alike were pleased with the service and welcomed the opportunity to honor veterans and those who died fighting for their country.

“Everything turned out fine,” Kozares said. Kozares admitted that he was nervous about rain spoiling the ceremony but was pleased that Mother Nature cooperated. “I thought it might rain, but the weather held up, we had some nice speakers and it was a good turnout. It was a really nice service”

Jim Yarris of Uniontown agreed. “It was one of the best services I’ve seen up here,” Yarris said.

His brother, Charles Yarris, also of Uniontown, said that he has been coming to the ceremony for many years and hopes that more young people would come out to remember those who have served in the military.

“I’m very patriotic and I’ve been coming here for more than 20 years,” Charles Yarris said. “The sad part is that in another ten years or so there won’t be too many veterans left. I hope more young people get involved in activities like this and remember veterans.”