People gathered at the Cos Cob Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 10112, many of them war veterans, for a ceremony Saturday.

 

The ceremony is held at the Veterans Memorial Park in Cos Cob twice a year, on Memorial Day and Veterans Day. The park along Strickland Road honors local veterans from World War II to the present. 

 

Organizers reminded the crowd that freedom isn't free and urged people to use the Memorial Day holiday weekend to reflect on the sacrifices made by the men and women who serve in the U.S. military.

Bill Cameron, one of the organizers of the event, spoke about the differences between those who served in World War II and those were served over the past 65 years. 

 

"For those since -- Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan -- there have been no victory parades," said Cameron. "But there have been tens of thousands of brave men and women who have fallen and given the last measure of devotion."

 

For many veterans, like Joseph Musich, the day was a special one because for him Memorial Day is about those he fought alongside who didn't make it home. 

 

"I served my country proudly and a lot of people don't understand that about Vietnam veterans," Musich said. "Americans should be proud of our American soldiers."