(Photo provided)

To the editor:

The townships of Black Brook and Jay Hometown Heroes Banner Project committee would like to thank those families that decided to honor their military veteran loved one with a banner for the 2019 year.

The volunteer four-person committee began working on the project in the fall of 2018. Many obstacles need to be addressed to finally get the project approved and, once achieved, then provide the public with the idea and hope that the project would be a success. Meetings and many ideas were tossed around to endeavor to make the project vision easy and user-friendly for those that chose to honor those veterans that have served. A Facebook page and email address were created to allow the public easy access to the committee and to discuss the necessary items needed to create their banner. Many photos were hand delivered to be scanned so the committee could assist in attaining the best quality photograph, using computer software to enhance older photographs before sending them to the local company for production.

A total of 40 banners will be installed before the Memorial Day weekend on Route 9N in the village of AuSable Forks. The banners will remain through Labor Day and then be stored until the following year. The committee decided to take them down earlier than the proposed date of Veterans Day due to the possibility of harsh fall weather and to strive to extend the life of the banners.

In closing, thanks again to all those that participated in the launch of the project and we have high hopes that others will order a banner in the next calendar year. The committee will provide notice when applications will begin to be accepted again and we will have a cutoff date to cease accepting orders for the 2020 project.

Please visit our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/Hometown-Heroes-Banner-Project-Black-Brook-Jay-328304604375696/, or email us at hometownheroesbbtoj@mail.com.

Bonnie Hackett

Lou Garso

Kevin Zaumetzer

Gene Gilbert