NJ Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial Foundation to Hold Annual Memorial Day Ceremony May 30

The New Jersey Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial Foundation (NJVVMF) will hold its annual Memorial Day ceremony, in recognition of U.S. soldiers who died while in the military service, on Monday, May 30 at 11:00 a.m. at the New Jersey Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial in Holmdel. 

Colonel Bertrand A. Ges, of Jackson, will serve as this year’s guest speaker.  The ceremony will also include the induction of two Vietnam Veterans into the Memorial’s In Memory Program and the presentation of two $2,500 scholarships to New Jersey high school students for their participation the NJVVMF scholarship program. The 2011 scholarship winners are Jordyn Tumas of Wayside and Allison Outwater of Wall Township. 

This year’s In Memory inductees are Specialist 4th Class James Nacion Jr. of Barnegat and Specialist 4th Class Anthony Simone of Plainfield.  In Memory honors New Jerseyans who served and died as a result of the war in Vietnam but whose names are not on the Memorial.  The inductees’ names will be placed on an engraved stone inside the Memorial so that all who visit will know that they are with their honored comrades.

Colonel Bertrand A. Ges is the Commander of the 72nd Field Artillery Brigade at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst.  Ges received his ROTC commission from the Valley Forge Military Junior College in 1985.  Prior to entering active duty in 1987, Ges received his undergraduate degree from Rutgers College and served in the New Jersey National Guard from 1984 until 1987 with the 1st and 3rd Battalions, 112th Field Artillery, 50th Armored Division.  Before joining the brigade as its new commander, Ges commanded Combined Joint Task Force Paladin, Afghanistan’s Counter-improvised explosive device task force.  His other assignments include Plans Chief and the Chief of the Director’s Staff Group, and commander, 3rd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment/82nd Airborne Division, when he deployed the battalion to Kandahar, Afghanistan, as part of Task Force Gun Devils during Operation Enduring Freedom from 2005 to 2006.

Ges’s awards and decorations include the Bronze Star, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Defense & Army Meritorious Service medals, Joint Service and Army Commendation medals, Army Achievement Medal, Humanitarian Service Medal; and Ranger, Master Parachutist, Airborne, Air Assault and Combat Action badges. 

The Vietnam Era Museum & Educational Center will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Memorial Day and admission is free for all visitors.  The Museum is located adjacent to the New Jersey Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial off the Garden State Parkway at exit 116 in Holmdel.  The Memorial is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  The Museum is normally open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.  For more information on the Memorial or Museum, call 732-335-0033 or visit www.njvvmf.org.