Dear
Malden Residents:
As I approach my second year in office, the one thing that has become abundantly clear is that Malden cares about Veterans.
From
dedicating chairs of honor to Prisoners of War and those Missing in Action in the City
Council chamber and the Jenkins Auditorium to the Annual
Flag Day Celebration to be held this Friday at Bell Rock Memorial Park to the
upcoming rededications of memorials honoring our Korean and Vietnam Veterans
and the Tartikoff family from the first World War, the Malden community remains
forever grateful to the brave men and women who kept us free.
Malden’s
pride and respect for those that served our country was most evident this past
weekend when our City hosted The Moving Wall. Not since the dedication of the
World War II Memorial at Bell Rock Memorial Park has there been such an
outpouring of community spirit. It is estimated that there were nearly 3,000
visitors to Forest Dale Cemetery during the three day event and it was not
without a lot of reflection for the 58,000 Patriots whose names adorn the Wall,
including 19 from Malden.
This
feeling of community gratitude permeates down to the next generation as we are
proud of Malden High School graduate Lisa DeLacey who will be attending West
Point in the fall. In her heartfelt remarks during the Memorial Day Assembly,
she explained how she wants to give back to the country that has given her so
much. I am certain that Lisa will continue to make us proud as she prepares for
the military academy.
Many
of these projects require annual funding and, the one thing the City Council
and I always agree on is remembering the sacrifices made by our Veterans. For
the second straight year, we will be increasing city funding to our Veterans
Services Department by nearly 5 percent.
The
backbone of Malden’s ongoing support and dedication to our Veterans’ issues is
Kevin Jarvis, Veterans Services Director. Kevin himself fought for his country
on more than one occasion and he could have stopped there, but here he is 20
years later working day in and day out to make sure Veterans receive everything
they deserve. Thank you, Kevin and thank you to our Veterans for defending our land
of the free and home of the brave.
Sincerely,
GARY CHRISTENSON
Mayor, City of Malden
