Veterans Day at Puerto Rican Vet's Monument

The sun shone brightly on the Puerto Rican Veterans Monument square at the corner of West Dedham and Washington Streets on Veterans Day, Friday November 11, as about 70 people including city and state officials, veterans and their loved ones, gathered to remember the members of the 65th Infantry Regiment, a unit of the United States Army from Puerto Rico that has served in every US war since World War 1.

The monument, which consists of bronze statues of a male and female soldier atop a granite base inscribed with the phrase, La Libertad No Es Gratis (Freedom Is Not Free) was the first in the US to honor Puerto Rican veterans. The monument was erected and dedicated in 2013 after 15 years of organizing, fundraising and planning by a group of veterans led by Jamaica Plain resident Antonio "Tony" Molina, a Marine who received the Purple Heart as a result of his Vietnam War service. Molina served as project director and now, as president of the Puerto Rican Veterans Monument Square Association (PRVMSA).

Mayor Martin J. Walsh, police commissioner William Evans, chief of Health and Human Services Felix G. Arroyo, Boston commissioner of Veterans' Services Giselle Sterling, City Council president Michelle Wu, city councilors Bill Linehan and Ayanna Pressley, Suffolk Register of Probate Felix D. Arroyo and Massachusetts secretary of Veterans Services Francisco Ureņa took part in the ceremony, which also included a prayer led by a local minister, performances of the US and Puerto Rican national anthems by 14 year old Boston Arts Academy student Sebastian Medina, PVRMSA member Guillermo Calendario performing Taps and the placement of a red, white and blue wreath at the base of the monument by Mayor Walsh.

The event was very much a family affair, as state representative Jeffrey Sanchez of Jamaica Plain was accompanied by his mother, community activist Maria Sanchez and his two small daughters, one of them holding a framed photo of his late father, a World War II veteran. Wu attended with her son in tow and Dan Manning, the Mayor's chief of staff for civic engagement, came to the proceedings with his two young sons dressed in Operation Thank A Vet T shirts.

Prior to the ceremony, Manning said, "It's great to celebrate all the veterans and the Puerto Rican veterans have been involved in every war to defend our country. I think it's great that we have this here in Boston to recognize their efforts." He added, "We've had a busy day. We've been doing Thank a Vet, knocking on doors of local veterans. Today we were in South Boston and we've been doing this all over the city for over a year now. It's been a wonderful experience. There is one man in South Boston who is a survivor of Pearl Harbor."

Remarks followed the opening prayer. In his address, Mayor Walsh said, "This is a beautiful place and a beautiful monument in our city and I want to thank everyone who keeps it this way every day." Walsh also praised Representative Sanchez for his efforts on behalf of veterans and thanked the veterans themselves. "They are an inspiration to us and they show us the strength of a united community and the importance of throwing yourself into service for others. That's the meaning of bravery and sacrifice," Walsh said. He continued, "What's remarkable about Boston's veterans is the diversity of our heroes. No matter their backgrounds, every single one of our veterans has put their lives on the line for all of us, for people they've never met and for future generations they will never meet."

In his comments, Sanchez recognized the sacrifices of Puerto Rican and Latino veterans and of their families and communities, calling for a moment of silence in their honor. After the silence, Sanchez spoke candidly of his own father who lived a simple life as a child in Puerto Rico, came to the mainland as a young man and "was drafted into a war that he didn't even understand what he was getting into at the age of 16. The success that I have and that we have as a family, a lot of it is due to him and the struggles that he and my mother had." Referring to the bitter divisiveness of the recent presidential campaign, Sanchez said, "We are here to celebrate as a unified community. The elections are over, what was said was said and now it is up to us to come together." Commissioner Sterling, a Marine veteran, noted the importance of having a female as well as a male figure as part of the monument, "Not just for the ones who are serving but also for our children, so that our girls can see themselves as American patriots as well."

Molina's address was marked by gratitude as he thanked sculptor Robert Shure, who created the statue of the two soldiers and thanked God for "always honoring us with a beautiful day." After the ceremony concluded, as if on cue, the wind kicked up and clouds hid the sun, dropping the temperature at the small square.

Sebastian Medina

Felix G. Arroyo and Sanchez

Felix D. Arroyo

Walsh and Molina place the wreath