Politics & Government

Have Veterans Day Observances Been Defunded?

You asked and Patch answers whether the town funding for Veteran's Day observances have been defunded in Hamilton.

The Hamilton town government does not fund the Veterans Day observances in Hamilton and has not in recent years, according to Hamilton Town Manager Michael Lombardo.

Lombardo's comments came in reaction to a "Speak Out" post on Hamilton-Wenham Patch that said the Board of Selectmen had cut funding for the Veterans Day observances this year.

Lombardo said he is not sure the source of the rumor that the town has defunded Veterans Day events. If the town has provided funding for Veterans Day, "it was long before I arrived" in 2009, he said.

"There have been no discussions regarding Veteran’s Day activities whatsoever, nothing to defund as there has been nothing in the budget," he said.

There has also been no recent requests from any organizations asking for funding for Veteran’s Day activities, he said.

Each year on Nov. 11, the observance in Hamilton typically starts with coffee and breakfast at A.P. Gardner American Legion Post 194.

Later in the morning, the parade forms at Hamilton Town Hall and marches silently to Hamilton Cemetery, where there is a moment of silence followed by a flag raising. Then Taps is played followed by the rifle squad firing three volleys.

The American Legion post covers the cost of the Veterans Day observances and the town pays for the Memorial Day observances, which are then submitted to the state for reimbursement, according to the Adjutant Douglas Tinsley.  There has been no discussion about cuts to that funding, he said.

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