With the month of May comes thoughts of the Kentucky Derby on the 6th, Mother's Day on the 14th, Armed Forces Day on the 20th, and of course, Memorial Day on the 29th, reminding us on how to honor our ancestors and veterans. The Town of Victory gets an A+ when it comes to honoring our veterans and is already planning its Memorial Day parade and celebration.

On Memorial Day morning, Supervisor Lucille Craine will lead a group of town citizens, scouts and veterans at 9 a.m. to the Victory Union Cemetery from “downtown” Victory. There they will be met by more people, some from as far away as Syracuse, gathered in the cemetery to honor their family and veterans' graves. A few minutes later we will hear the sound of the military cadence of the approaching color guard under Legion Commander Jeff Smith from the LaBuff-Cole Legion Post No. 911 of Cato. After they have marched into the cemetery, veteran Harry Sowles will address the gathering and lay a red, white and blue wreath on one of the veteran's graves. I can attest that this is a special honor for that veteran's family as the Legion laid a wreath on my father's grave three years ago at the White Cemetery in the Town of Ira. The color guard riflemen then will fire the salute and march out of the cemetery. This is all accomplished in a most respectful and timely manner, as it is the fourth stop of the morning for this group since 8 a.m., and there are will still be two more stops to make culminating in a parade at 11 a.m. in Cato.

Most veterans in Victory belonged either to the Peterson-Hall Legion Post No. 436 in Red Creek or the LaBuff-Cole Legion Post No. 911 in Cato. The first veterans' Honor Roll in Victory was built in 1945 at a special Labor Day flag-raising ceremony. There were 84 stars on the Honor Roll with four of them gold in recognition of Claude Brown, Arnold Farr, Winfield Hall and William Thompson, who gave their lives in World War II. A new Honor Roll now hangs on the outside of the Victory Fire Department building. The Peterson-Hall Post always decorates the veterans graves in the Town of Victory with flags before Memorial Day. The American Legion was organized in 1919 by four line officers of the American Expeditionary Forces in war torn France. Among the representatives there was William Titus of Cato.

The LaBuff-Cole Post (named for Jay LaBuff lost in World War I and Francis Cole lost in World War II) color guard has participated in many military funerals, led many parades in the county, including the County Bi-Centennial parade in 1999, and also participates in the Victory Veterans Day Program on Nov. 11 each year.

The color guard has been active since the late 1940s and has served much of northern Cayuga County for more than 60 years. Members have included: Arthur Ausburn, George James Baker, Arthur Bennett, Steven Bowman, James Brewster, Richard Brown, August Buettner, Joseph Buettner, Robert Butman, Paul Cady, Earl Chapman, Frederick Cole, James Conley, Vincent Cook, Paul Dalton, Melvin Dreverman, Bryan Dudley, Eliot Dudley, Robert Dudley, Frederick Gauger, Herbert Gilmore, Burton Green, Frank Greene, Edwin Grunder, Myles Harter, Ralph Hawley, Clarence Haynes, Ernest Holmes, James Jones, Ed Knecht, Rolland Lamphere, Dennis Landers, Paul Lee, Richard Lees, Lawrence Leyburn, Ronald Lloyd, Donald Mack, Paul “Dick” Martin, Peter Mayenzet, Florent “Skinny” Meloling, Kermit Merrick, George Morgan, David Napoli, Claude Olmstead, Daryl Pettigrass, Richard Pollack, Colton Pooler, Fran Porter, Fran Pratt, Kenneth

Roberts, Richard Robinson Sr., Richard Robinson Jr., Joseph Saya Jr., Cindy Sheckler, Clarke Sheehan, Robert Sheltra, John Smelski, Dennis Smith, Jeffery Smith, Harry Sowles, Bert Stamp, Donald Streeter, William Terwilliger, Fred Vivenzio, Jack Warner, Calvin Weldon, William Weldon, and Harry Whitford. There is even a youth color guard, the Sons of the Legion, composed of children of the veterans listed above.

We salute these veterans who are still serving their country in this honorable manner. When Memorial Day comes in a few weeks, let's remember those family members and veterans and plan on attending one of the ceremonies starting at 8 a.m. at the Ira Cemetery, Ira Hill; 8:15 a.m. at Ira Union (White Cemetery), Town of Ira;

8:45 a.m. at Cato Legion Monument to area Veterans, Legion Grounds; 9:20 a.m. at Victory Union Cemetery, Town of Victory; 10 a.m. at Conquest/Spring Lake/ or Emerson Cemeteries, Town of Conquest; and at 11 a.m. with a parade to the Cato Union Cemetery, Village of Cato. The service at Monumental Cemetery in Meridian will not be held this year due to construction on Route 370.

Thanks to Dennis Hadcock of the Peterson-Hall Legion Post No. 436 of Red Creek, to Richard Lees and Harry Sowles of LaBuff-Cole Legion Post No. 911 and to Marian Houghtaling for help with information in this column.

Beverly Sayles grew up in the town of Victory and writes

about its history