St. Bernard’s Catholic Church on East Corydon Street held its sixth annual veteran’s luncheon on Sunday in honor of the veterans that fought for the many freedoms that are granted in the United States.
A mass beginning at noon preceded the luncheon, as the Rev. Ray Gramata led a full congregation in prayer in the American flags-decorated cathedral. A small table sat at the front, and Kim Lance, local veteran and member of the Patriot Guard Riders of Bradford, described what the table symbolized.
“It symbolized the fallen and missing,” Lance said. “The table was set for one, symbolizing the frailness of one prisoner against the enemy. The table cloth was white, to symbolize the purity of the intentions each soldier has when fighting in war. There a was a small amount of red to represent the blood lost.”
The luncheon began a few minutes after 1 p.m., with the participants of the Mass crossing the street over to the Father Leo Gallina Social Hall.
In her sixth year as luncheon organizer, Beth Mongillo said there couldn’t have been a better turnout.
“Before I started, all we did was offer coffee and donuts, and I thought ‘no this can’t be like this,’” Mongillo said. “Men and women put their lives on the line; it needed to be bigger and better.”
Mongillo said the luncheon has blossomed ever since, from coffee and donuts, to various pastries, soups and other meals.
Lance added that there was so much soup and food to go around, they were giving out take-home packages to ensure the excess wouldn’t go to waste.
“It was almost like we made enough to feed all of Bradford,” Lance said.
The luncheon reserved a table of honor for five local veterans; Larry Smith, Tony Falconi, Cliff Ackley, Dr. Edward Konwinski and Elmer DeLucia. The table of honor was full of war memory chatter, with the World War II vets describing many details of the war. The men laughed hardily as they joked about the different branches of the military that varied around the table.
They also spoke very highly of the event.
“We appreciate all of this,” Smith said
“We couldn’t ask for much more than this; it’s wonderful,” Ackley said with his hand on his heart.
The honored veterans also detailed their favorite meals of the day, which included the chili, sandwiches and clam chowder.
“Personally I loved all the pastries, even though I probably shouldn’t have eaten so much,” Falconi joked.
Every year, the luncheon receives donations that go towards taking care of veterans as well as funding the luncheons. This year, $935 dollars were raised, with $795 going to the veterans and the remaining $140 to go towards next year’s luncheon.
