Lynn seniors remember importance of service

LYNN – Almost one in three of the 105 seniors registered to attend the Pond View senior day care center at Briarcliff Lodge are veterans, and Jeffrey Hollett felt right at home among them, wearing his uniform bedecked with military honors reflecting 27 years of Army service.?The connection between brothers and sisters who wear the uniform has strengthened our heritage,” he said Friday after speaking to almost 40 Pond View clients.The Kernwood Drive facility cares for senior citizens such as Richard “Tex” Williams, who comes to Pond View five days a week. And he appreciated Hollett?s post-Memorial Day visit to Briarcliff Lodge.Blake Hansen, aide to U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, also attended the event, as the Congressman was in Gloucester Friday afternoon to award a fellow Iraq War veteran the Bronze Star with Valor.Hollett?s stepdaughter, newly transplanted Tennessee resident Shannon McGillicuddy, sang the “Star-Spangled Banner,” and Hollett introduced six Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps cadets who performed a routine for the seniors.?They are the future – they are your hometown Lynn youth,” Hollett said.His military career included 16 years active duty service. Hollett is administrative clerk in the city Veterans Services Department.The English High School JROTC squad included Luz Matul, who said she is considering a Navy career.?I want to go to college first,” Matul said.Pond View senior and Swampscott native Karen Landry said she is thrilled to see women entering the military and said she did double duty as a Navy wife.?I had to be mother and father. I said goodbye to the ship and went home to the kids,” Landry said.She said Hollett?s visit and the JROTC performance gave Pond View veterans a chance to thank and praise veterans.?I don?t think our military gets enough credit and military wives certainly don?t,” she said.Williams served four years in the Coast Guard on tours of duty that took him to Holland and the Azores and through plenty of close calls, including a tsunami that nearly capsized a 311-foot cutter.?We were lucky,” he recalled.Pond View Executive Director Darcey Adams said honoring veterans is an important part of Pond View?s daily activities. Veterans run a senior group that meets on a regular basis and the morning flag raising is an important daily event.?There is a lot of commonality,” she said.