Mayor Walsh Launches Hometown Heroes Banner Program to Honor Veterans and Active-Duty Military in The City of Syracuse

• by Urban CNY News
• May 24, 2024

Families and friends can sponsor banners featuring their loved ones to be posted on city streets Syracuse Parks Conservancy, Dunbar American Legion Post 1642 and Syracuse University Institute for Veterans and Military Families join forces with the City to bring banner program to Syracuse Orders are being accepted on SyracuseHometownHeroes.com until June 20 Syracuse, N.Y. — Standing in front of a giant U.S. flag on the front of City Hall, Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh launched Syracuse Hometown Heroes on Wednesday, May 22. The Hometown Heroes program, popular in communities around the nation, allows families and friends to sponsor banners featuring their veteran or active duty loved ones to be posted on city streets. Banners can be ordered at SyracuseHometownHeroes.com until June 20. In the inaugural year of the program, 300 banners will be posted in two locations in the city: on James Street from near downtown extending to Eastwood and inside Kirk Park on the City’s southside. Banners will be hung by the beginning August and stay up until Veterans Day. The program is expected to expand in future years. “Our veterans and people serving in the military have given so much to our nation. This is a way for Syracuse to show its appreciation for all they have sacrificed,” said Mayor Walsh. “The response to our plans to start a Syracuse Hometown Heroes program has been amazing. Don’t wait to order your banner.” The cost is $160 per banner and includes three years of posting. The fee covers banner printing and posting and the ongoing administration of the program. Orders can be submitted online or by mail to: Syracuse Hometown Heroes, c/o Syracuse Parks Conservancy, P.O. Box 11384. Syracuse, NY  13218. The first 300 orders will be accepted in the order they are received. The City created Syracuse Hometown Heroes in partnership with the Syracuse Parks Conservancy, which is administering the program, and the Dunbar American Legion Post 1642 in Syracuse. The program is sponsored by the Syracuse University Institute of Veterans and Military Families (IVMF). “The Syracuse Parks Conservancy is honored to be a part of this tribute to veterans and people actively serving the U.S. Armed Forces in our community,” said Kevin McClelland, president of the Syracuse Parks Conservancy. “Kirk Park is an ideal place to showcase the brave and selfless people of Syracuse who serve our nation. Syracuse Hometown Heroes banners also send a positive message about dedication and love of country.” “Our families and friends take immense pride in our service to this nation,” said Herb Dunmore Commander of the Dunbar American Legion Post 1642 – one of the oldest Black American Legion Posts in the United States. “I urge people from across the community to take advantage of the program so that we may show how proud we are of the diversity within our veteran community in this city.” “Syracuse University is pleased to be part of this important initiative to honor those in our community who have served our nation in uniform,” said Mike Haynie, Syracuse University vice chancellor for strategic initiatives and innovation and executive director of the D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University. “Our university has a long history of supporting veterans and military families in Syracuse and we look forward to building on that legacy through the Hometown Heroes program. Thanks to Mayor Walsh for leading this well-deserved recognition for veterans in the City of Syracuse.”   IVMF is also the creator and operator of SyracuseServes, a coordinated care network that ensures Syracuse’s military-connected community can easily and successfully navigate to the care, resources, and services they need. The program is located at the National Veterans Resource Center (NVRC) at the Daniel and Gayle D’Aniello Building, as a program of the D’Aniello Institute for Veteran and Military Families (IVMF). Launched by IVMF in 2022 in partnership with the City, SyracuseServes has already helped more than 500 people get access to care and services to help veterans and their families sustain healthy, productive, and economically stables lives following separation from the armed forces. The Oneida County Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, which operates the Hometown Heroes program in the Mohawk Valley, assisted Syracuse in creating Syracuse Hometown Heroes.