Geauga

A Pearl Harbor Day Memorial Service will be 11 a.m. Friday, Dec. 7, at the Burton Village Gazebo, on Burton Square. For details call 440-834-8764.

Lake County

Eastlake VFW Post 3863 and Willowick Eastlake Post 678 will host a joint Pearl Harbor Day ceremony at 11 a.m. Friday, Dec. 7 inside council chambers at Eastlake city Hall. The public is invited to attend.

Pearl Harbor Day at Hellriegel’s Inn

The annual Pearl Harbor Day remembrance dinner will be 6 p.m., Dec. 7 at Hellriegel’s Inn, 1840 Mentor Avenue, Painesville. The guest speaker will be Army Lt. Col. David Barlett.  Cocktails at 6 p.m. will be followed with a T-bone steak dinner at 7 p.m. Tickets are $35 per person and spouses and attendants are welcome. For details and tickets call 440-354-9530.

The committee will be setting up the hall on Thursday, Dec. 6 and volunteers would be welcomed to help.

Ashtabula

There will be a service at Veterans Memorial Park on Main Avenue, Ashtabula at 2 p.m. Dec. 7. This will coincide with the time of the attack and the sinking of the USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.

The Detachment name sake Henry Kalinowski was one of those who perished aboard the Arizona. The public is invited to attend the ceremony.

I cannot help but wonder what my life would have been like without the Vietnam veterans who have been a part of it.
The groundbreaking for the Education Center at the Wall in Washington, D.C., was Wednesday. The center will put faces to all of those names inscribed on that highly polished black granite wall, The Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
This generation of warriors had a vision and made it come true. “The Wall” is a memorial to the 58,000 men and women who gave their lives in Vietnam. It’s a memorial that will stand as a testament to those who served in a very tumultuous time.
Draftees or volunteers, those who served came back changed. Just ask any mother with a son who went to Vietnam. One of those mothers once told me she couldn’t watch war movies because of the way her boy had changed since his service time in Vietnam.
The Vietnam veterans seem to be the most vocal about recognizing the service of the newest generation of veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan. The Vietnam veterans are putting their money where their mouths are, and the Education Center also will serve as an interim memorial for the young men and women who have not or will not return from the ongoing conflicts.
The Education Center also will house the collection of more than 400,000 pieces of memorabilia that have been left in tribute at the Wall since it opened 30 years ago.
Not having the Marines and soldiers in my life who served during this awful war is unimaginable, the pride I feel in saying that my husband, two brothers and two cousins served cannot be described. They all have taught me how to enjoy the moment, how to communicate without saying a word and how to give unconditionally even when the appreciation for that giving is not there.

Pearl Harbor Day at Hellriegel’s Inn
The annual Pearl Harbor Day remembrance dinner will be 6 p.m. Dec. 7 at Hellriegel’s Inn, 1840 Mentor Ave. in Painesville. The guest speaker will be Army Lt. Col. David Barlett. Cocktails at 6 p.m. will be followed with a T-bone steak dinner at 7 p.m. Tickets are $35 per person and spouses and attendants are welcome. For details and tickets, call 440-354-9530.
The committee will be setting up the hall on Thursday and volunteers would be welcomed to help.

‘Fill the Cruiser’
“Fill the Cruiser” will be noon to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Fairport Harbor Veterans of Foreign Wars Post , 540 New St. in Fairport Harbor. The post and Fairport Harbor police will host the community Christmas party to benefit Toys for Tots. There also will be a remote broadcast by country station WKKY-FM 104.7 during the party.
Donate a new unwrapped toy and then join in the activities inside. The afternoon will include games, crafts, music, prizes and visits from some special guests. Photos with Santa will be available 2 to 4 p.m. followed by a visit from Jungle Terry. For details, call the post home at 440-352-1123.

Toys for Tots collection in Chester Township
The Luczkowski Agency, 8045 Mayfield Road in Chester Township, is teaming up with local U.S. Marines to be an official drop-off location for the holiday Toys for Tots campaign. Please bring new, unwrapped toys as donation for this worthy cause during regular office hours from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fridays. For more information, call Karen Martinkowski at 440-729-4042.

Honor Flight fund raiser successful
AMVETS Post 109, 7847 Lake Shore Blvd. in Mentor-on-the-Lake, hosted a successful Honor Flight fundraiser. The event raised $2,693 for the Honor Flight program. Tony’s Subway Inn of Painesville donated the spaghetti sauce for the spaghetti dinner and Modern Woodman matched money raised up to $1,000.

Military families honored with free admission
The Lake Metroparks Board of Park Commissioners will honor Lake County military families with free admission (immediate families only) to Country Lights at Lake Metroparks Farmpark from 5 to 9 p.m. Dec. 12. Advanced registration is required and tickets are limited. Tickets include the Toy Workshop. Please call Farmpark admissions at 440-256-2158 to reserve tickets by Dec. 5. A Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System card is required at time of admission.

Willoughby Legion delivers food baskets
Palmer-Roberts American Legion Post 214 delivered food baskets to six families with 16 children for Thanksgiving. The collection has begun for food, gifts and monetary donations for Christmas food baskets and Santa items for the children. Donations should be made by Dec. 13.
The auxiliary members also are collecting new or slightly used blankets to be taken to homeless shelters. The deadline for blanket collection is Jan. 17. All donations may be made at the post home, 4304 Center St.. in Willoughby.

To submit items for this column or the online listings, send them to: The News-Herald, Attn.: Larece Galer, 7085 Mentor Ave., Willoughby, OH 44094; fax to 440-975-2293; or via email to LGaler@News-Herald.com.

It is Thanksgiving weekend and most of you will be starting the holiday shopping and making preparations for the Christmas season.
I realize this will sound corny, but I truly wish for peace worldwide and especially for our country. Please remember we are still at war and there are men and women far from home who need to know we support them. Please donate to the USO, to the care packages or remember the family of an active duty soldier with kindness.
For some families that may have only enough to exist day to day, the holiday season will bring more pain. Put a new unwrapped toy in a Marine Corps Toys for Tots donation box, or donate cash to buy toys for those children who may not have a Christmas.
Many of the local Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legions and Marine Corps detachments conduct food drives to benefit military families in the post home area. It is a very simple thing to donate a few canned goods or nonperishable items to these small local drives.
After a nasty and what seemed like an eternal election season, I am looking forward to the Christmas season. I also look forward to seeing my favorite Christmas commercials such as Santa riding the floating Norelco razor heads over the snow. (Gave my age away on that one.) On this Black Friday when shopping becomes the national sport, I wish you a very Merry Christmas with hope that spreading cheer will include your support of our military 
 
Burton Legion plays host to Santa and crafters
Burton American Legion Post 459 Auxiliary will host Breakfast with Santa from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the post home, 14052 Goodwin St. in Burton. Admission is $6 for adults; $3 for children ages 6 to 12; and free for children ages 5 and younger.
The Ladies Auxiliary will present the 12th Annual Santa’s Collection Craft Show from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the post. Unique gifts, crafts and toys from area crafters will be for sale. For table information, call Carol at 440-834-4532. All proceeds will benefit the scholarship fund.
 
Country Lights military family night
Lake Metroparks Board of Park Commissioners will honor Lake County military families with free admission (immediate families only) to Country Lights at Lake Metroparks Farmpark in Kirtland from 5 to 9 p.m. Dec. 12. Advanced registration is required and tickets are limited. Tickets include the Toy Workshop. Please call Farmpark admissions at 440-256-2158 to reserve tickets by Dec. 5. A Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System card is required at time of admission.
 
Toys for Tots donation point
Dr. Stephen Carosello DDS Inc., 9500 Mentor Ave., suite 280 in  Mentor, will accept donations of new unwrapped toys for Toys for Tots. Toys drop-offs may be made 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays.
 
Christmas stockings for the troops
Operation Christmas Stocking will continue through Wednesday. Visit any of the DeJohn Funeral Homes and pick up a Christmas stocking. Take the stocking home, decorate it and then fill it with items that can be shipped to our troops abroad in time for Christmas. For details, call 440-516-5555.
 
‘Fill the Cruiser’ returns to Fairport VFW
Fairport Harbor VFW Post 7754 and the Fairport Harbor Police Department will host the Community Christmas Party and the annual “Fill the Cruiser” event at the post, 540 New St. in Fairport Harbor.
Help fill the police cruiser with donations of new unwrapped toys, then join the activities inside. There will be games, crafts, music, prizes and visits from special guests.
Photos with Santa will be 2 to 4 p.m. and a visit from Jungle Terry will begin at 4. The event also will feature a remote broadcast by country station WKKY-FM 104.7.
 
Pearl Harbor Day service in Burton
A Pearl Harbor Day memorial service will be 11 a.m. Dec. 7 at the Burton Village Gazebo on Burton Square. For details, call 440-834-8764.

To submit items for this column or the online listings, send them to: The News-Herald, Attn.: Larece Galer, 7085 Mentor Ave., Willoughby, OH 44094; fax to 440-975-2293; or via email to LGaler@News-Herald.com.

Can you imagine attending a trial and being handed a program as you entered the courtroom?
I would like to thank Dr. Harry “Bud” Huston of Willoughby for giving me a copy of just such a program. Huston was stationed in Germany at the time of the Nuremburg trial and attended a few times while he was there. Huston was in the Army with the 178th Engineer Combat Battalion.
After seeing “Judgment At Nuremberg” on television recently, I started reading up on the trial and found that there really were several trials. They were grouped by area of activity, medical, legal, ethnological, economic and political. The movie starring Burt Lancaster and Spencer Tracy was loosely based on the “legal” trial.
The real proceedings began Nov. 20, 1945, with the most famous defendants. The defendants were the top echelon of the Third Reich, including Hermann Goering, Hitler’s second in command; Deputy Fuhrer Rudolf Hess; and Albert Speer, Hitler’s architect. According to the program, there were 20 defendants answering for war crimes. With a total of 20 defendants, I now understand the need for a program.
My thanks to Huston for the copy of the program and piquing my curiosity in the historical event.

Library collection highlights First World War
Kirtland Public Library, 9267 Chillicothe Road in Kirtland, will display a collection of colorful World War I era sheet music through Nov. 30. The display includes snapshots of a World War I ambulance driver, a soldier, a picture of a military receiving station for the wounded, and postcards of the era depicting Gen. John J. Pershing’s birthplace and home in Laclede, Mo.
Music of Fannie Brice, Ted Lewis and other famous entertainers of the time are on display. The collection is on loan from Margaret J. Hommel and Ashley Gustafson and available for viewing during regular library hours. For details, call the library at 440-256-7323.

Work party for Boulevard of Flags
Help take down the flags at the Boulevard of 500 Flags. To help, just show up between 8:30 and 9 a.m. Saturday in the parking lot at the Boulevard, 35150 Lake Shore Blvd. in Eastlake. Bring a pair of work gloves and help get the boulevard ready for winter. For details, call Joe Strand at 440-942-9344.
Auxiliary hosts cabbage roll dinner
American Legion Auxiliary Unit 336, 60 Chester St. in Painesville, will host a cabbage roll dinner 5 to 7:30 p.m. today at the post home. For details, call 440-357-7711.

Park board honors
military families
Lake Metroparks Board of Park Commissioners is honoring Lake County military families with free admission (immediate families only) to Country Lights at Lake Metroparks Farmpark, 5 to 9 p.m. Dec. 12. Advanced registration is required and tickets are limited. Tickets include the Toy Workshop. Please call Farmpark admission at 440-256-2158 to reserve tickets by Dec. 5.
Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS) card is required at the time of admission.

VFW Auxiliary hosts
breakfast Sunday
The Ladies Auxiliary of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2595, 570 Liberty St. in Painesville, will host a breakfast beginning at 9 a.m. Sunday at the post home. All are welcome. For details, call 440-354-9090.

Santa to visit Burton
Breakfast with Santa hosted by the Burton American Legion Auxiliary Post 459, 14052 Goodwin St. in Burton, will be 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nov. 24 and Nov. 25 at the post home. Tickets are $6 for adults; $3 for children ages 6 through 12; and children younger than 5 will be admitted free. For details, call the post home at 440-834-8621.

Operation Christmas
Stocking
DeJohn Funeral Homes and Crematory is sponsoring the fourth annual Operation Christmas Stocking for Soldiers through Nov. 28. Stop at either location of the funeral home and pick up a Christmas stocking for one of our heroes serving overseas. Fill and decorate the stocking and return it before Nov. 28 and it will be shipped to the troops in time for Christmas.
Stockings can be picked
up or dropped off between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. through Nov. 28.

Dentist aids Toys-for-Tots
Dr. Stephen T. Carosello, a dentist who practices at 9500 Mentor Ave., Suite 280 in Mentor, will host a collection point for Toys-for-Tots. It is not necessary to be a patient to donate. The office is open for toy drop-offs Monday through Thursday between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. until Dec. 13.

To submit items for this column or the online listings, send them to: The News-Herald, Attn.: Larece Galer, 7085 Mentor Ave., Willoughby, OH 44094; fax to 440-975-2293; or via email to LGaler@News-Herald.com.

Veterans Day weekend is upon us and the department stores are offering sales and discounts. A word of advice to those veterans who are out and about: Ask the merchant or restaurant you patronize if they offer a veterans discount.
Many establishments offer discounts and even free meals to veterans with proof of service.
Retailers offer discounts on everything from cell phones to haircuts and clothing to building supplies. If you served and have proof of service, just ask and you may be pleasantly surprised to find that the final total has been discounted in thanks for your service.
 
Happy Birthday Marines
A happy 237th birthday to the United States Marine Corps, which was founded on Nov. 10, 1775, in Philadelphia at the Tun Tavern. The Col. Justice M. Chambers Detachment 555 of the Marine Corps League will host an open house beginning at noon Saturday at “Gunny’s Hall,” 8720 Twinbrook Drive in Mentor. For details, call 440-974-9380.
 
Library offers military book sale
Madison Public Library will offer a military-theme book sale from Nov. 1 through 14 at the library, 6111 Middle Ridge Road in Madison. The sale will be open during regular library hours and all of the books have a military theme. All proceeds of the sale will benefit the Friends of Madison Public Library. For details, call 440-428-2189.
 
Operation Christmas Stockings for Soldiers
DeJohn Funeral Home and Crematory is sponsoring the fourth annual “Operation Christmas Stockings for Soldiers” through Nov. 28. The community may visit DeJohn funeral homes and pick up a free Christmas stocking to take home, decorate and stuff with Christmas cheer. Stuffed stockings returned to the funeral home by Nov. 28 will be shipped to the troops abroad in time for Christmas.
Stockings and a list of suggested items for stuffing and shipping overseas will be provided by the funeral home. Anyone wishing to participate may stop at 4600 Mayfield Road in South Euclid or 126 South St. in Chardon between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. through Nov. 28. For details, call 440-516-5555.
 
Aviation book sale and pancake breakfast
The International Women’s Air and Space Museum’s annual book sale and pancake breakfast will be 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 10 at Burke Lakefront Airport, 1501 North Marginal Road in Cleveland. The books and aviation items will be for sale and the pancake breakfast will be $5 per person. For details, call 216-623-1111 or visit www.iwasm.org.
 
Radio show offers look at First Armistice Day
The “LEGACIES” radio show on WELW-AM 1330 will broadcast a special interview at 9:30 a.m. Sunday to commemorate the First Armistice Day on Nov. 11, 1918. The interview is with Marine Arthur Keller and includes his memories of the final day of the war. The interview was done by his daughter, Joyce Keller, in 1974 when her father was 75 years old.
 
Military care package collection at NDCL
Notre Dame Cathedral Latin’s Christian Leadership class is sponsoring a military care package drive through the Adopt-A-Platoon program. AAP provides an opportunity for Americans to reach out and touch an American service member’s heart.
NDCL’s goal is to raise funds and supply care packages to send to a platoon of 75 soldiers (65 men and 10 women). All items may be dropped off in the school office or Room 207. For more information, call NDCL theology teacher Douglas Murray at 440-286-6226.
 
Volunteers to help with Boulevard of Flags
Volunteers are needed to help take down the flags at the Boulevard of 500 Flags, 35150 Lake Shore Blvd. in Eastlake at 8:30 a.m. Nov. 17. If you would like to help, please report to the back parking lot between 8:30 and 9 a.m. Bring a pair of work gloves and help get the boulevard ready for winter. For details, call Joe Strand at 440-942-9344.
 
Painesville VFW serves breakfast
The Ladies Auxiliary of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2595 will host a breakfast beginning at 9 a.m. Nov. 18 at the post home, 570 Liberty St. in Painesville. For details, call 440-354-9090.

Breakfast with Santa
The Burton American Legion Post 459 Auxiliary will host Breakfast with Santa from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nov. 24 and 25 at the post home, 14052 Goodwin St. in Burton. Admission is $6 for adults; $3 for children ages 6 to 12 and free for children ages 5 and younger.
The Ladies Auxiliary will present the 12th Annual Santa’s Collection Craft Show from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 24 at the post. Unique gifts, crafts and toys will be for sale. For table information, call Carol at 440-834-4532. All proceeds will benefit the scholarship fund.
 
Fairport Post serves fish fry meals
VFW Post 7754, 540 New St. in Fairport Harbor, will offer a perch fry from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. for lunch and 4 to 7 p.m. for dinner. The dinners are served on the second and fourth Fridays of the month and are open to the public. For details, call 440-352-1123.
To submit items for this column or the online listings, send them to: The News-Herald, Attn.: Larece Galer, 7085 Mentor Ave., Willoughby, OH 44094; fax to 440-975-2293 or via email to LGaler@News-Herald.com.

The Second Annual Baskets of Appreciation for families of Service Men and Women in Lake County will be 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Nov. 15-17 and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Nov. 18. Basket assembly will be at the Lake County Fairgrounds 4H Building. Help is needed to assemble the basket so please bring a friend.

To make the holidays brighter while their loved ones serve out country come help assemble clothing, toiletry items, toys and games, stocking stuffers (healthy snacks and miscellaneous goodies) and household items into baskets.

Please start saving new items. We also need medium and large baskets. We will be collecting the items for the baskets through November. For pick up call 440-975-8880. The baskets will be distributed Thanksgiving week to approximately 195 families in Lake County.

AMVETS Post 1971 in Perry has done it again. It has rocked its way to another $1,500 for the benefit of Hospice of the Western Reserve.
Each year for the past 17 years, rocking chairs have been placed in front of the post home, 4129 Main St. in Perry, and donations are accepted by the rockers. The post has donated a total of $48,000 to hospice in the 17 years of the Rock-a-Thon.
There were 18 rockers in front of the post home and two were at the Perry IGA for this year’s Rock-a-Thon. Those participating in the rocking were from AMVETS Post 109; Ladies Auxiliary of Post 109 and the president of the AMVETS Ladies Auxiliary from Post 22 in Vermilion.

Auxiliary Unit 214 to be honored
Each year, the Willoughby Rotary Club honors a distinguished citizen and civic organization. This year, the Ladies Auxiliary Unit of Palmer-Roberts Post 214 of Willoughby will be honored as the distinguished civic organization. The luncheon will be Jan. 28 at Pine Ridge Country Club.

Special Armistice Day
radio show
In honor of the first Armistice Day, Nov. 11, 1918, Tom Swope’s “LEGACIES” radio show at 9:30 a.m. Nov. 11 on WELW-AM 1330 will feature an interview with Marine Arthur Keller, including his memories of the final day of World War I. Keller was 75 years old at the time the interview was done by his daughter, Joyce Keller, in 1974.
Swope has done more than 450 interviews for the Veterans History Project for The Library of Congress.
His book “LEGACIES: Stories from the Second World War” was selected by The Veterans History Project as one of the featured books at the 2012 National Book Festival in Washington, D.C.
Eastlake post to host breakfast
Eastlake Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3863, 33641 Vine St. in Eastlake, will serve a breakfast buffet, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sunday at the post home. Donation is $5 per person. For details, call 440-942-3980.

Council on Aging
salutes veterans
The Lake County Council on Aging will present a Wednesday workshop to salute veterans beginning at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 7 at the council office, 8520 East Ave. in Mentor. The Lake County Veterans Service Office and the Council on Aging will present information about available assistance and programs for men and women who have honorably served their country.
For details or to register, call the Council on Aging office at 440-205-8111 or email maribeth@lccoa.org.

Dinner benefits
Honor Flight veterans
A benefit dinner for Honor Flight will be 5 to 8 p.m. Nov. 10 at AMVETS Post 109, 7847 Lake Shore Blvd. in Mentor-on-the-Lake. The dinner also will include a reverse raffle and only 100 tickets will be sold for the event. Tickets are $12 and include dinner and DJ entertainment. Sideboards will be available for $2 and $3. All proceeds will benefit Honor Flight. For details, call the post at 440-257-9217.

Book sale to fly Nov. 10
The International Women’s Air and Space Museum will host its annual book sale and pancake breakfast from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 10 at Burke Lakefront Airport in Cleveland. A pancakes and sausage breakfast will be served. The breakfast donation is $5. For details, call 216-632-1111 or online at www.iwasm.org.

Catholic War Veterans collect
for USO
The Catholic War Veterans Post 1959 of Lake County will host a USO Care Package Event for the troops in Afghanistan at all the masses at St. John Vianney Catholic Church, 7575 Bellflower Road in Mentor, the first two weekends in November.
The Catholic War Veterans Post 1959 Membership Poppy Drive will be Nov. 10 and 11, at St. Gabriel Church, 9925 Johnnycake Ridge Road in Concord Township For more information on either event, call Second Vice Cmdr. Ken Kirchner at 440-257-2156.

Burton Legion post
serves chili and soup
Atwood-Mauck Post 459 of the American Legion, 14052 Goodwin St. in Burton, will host an all-you-can-eat chili and soup dinner free to all veterans from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. Nov. 11, at the post home. For details, call Bo at 440-834-8764.

Burton post inviting
new members
The American Legion Junior Auxiliary and the Sons of the American Legion of Burton-Middlefield Post 459, Atwood-Mauck, are accepting new members. Those eligible will be 18 years of age and younger, and be the daughter, granddaughter or sister of a current Legion member. For details, call Laurie Wood at 571-278-2037.
The Sons of the American Legion are all male descendants — sons, grandsons or brothers — of a veteran.
For details about the SALs, call Charles Boehnlein at 440-834-1191 or Ron Laurent at 440-343-1478. 

To submit items for this column or the online listings, send them to: The News-Herald, Attn.: Larece Galer, 7085 Mentor Ave., Willoughby, OH 44094: fax to 440-975-2293; or via email to LGaler@News-Herald.com.