PENTA honors local veterans at Fifth Annual Flag Raising Ceremony

WESTBOROUGH _ Memorial Day came early as over 100 community members and celebrated veterans gathered at PENTA Communications, Inc. for its Fifth Annual Flag Raising Ceremony on Thursday, May 24 in celebration of Military Appreciation Month and in honor of the Massachusetts Veteran community.

This event symbolized remembrance and gratitude for the Commonwealth’s veteran community where a standing room only crowd gathered to hear state elected officials, along with business and community leaders. Speakers included Secretary of Veterans’ Services Francisco Ureña, State Representative Carolyn Dykema, State Representative Hannah Kane, and PENTA Communications, Inc. Founder and CEO Deborah Penta.

“We gather today to thank all veterans for the sacrifices that they and their families have made to ensure that we stand as one nation, with the acknowledgment that those freedoms that we have as Americans are never taken for granted,” said Penta.

The marketing firm welcomed members of the local veteran community and family members of those currently serving in the armed forces on active duty, along with community business leaders, educators, and students. Penta offered special recognition to Westborough Gold Star Mother Rita Lee, who was unable to attend the event. “As many of you know, 97-year-old Gold Star Mother Rita Lee has joined us every year. She is unable to attend this morning; however, we honor her with our prayers, and send her well wishes and gratitude for her son’s service,” Penta said.

Penta introduced Keynote Speaker Secretary Ureña, who served in the United States Marine Corps for eight years and was awarded a Purple Heart for his service during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Secretary Ureña delivered a poignant speech, which paid tribute to the families and active military members who are heroically serving in turbulent locations.

“May we never forget that we still have men and women serving in harm’s way and that at any time they too could pay that ultimate sacrifice. But that we may provide opportunities for them to transition back to our communities successfully and be the beacon of leadership that they continue to be as veterans and returning service members,” said Ureña.

State Representative Dykema thanked PENTA for hosting the celebration each year and offered additional gratitude to Vietnam veterans who did not receive the recognition they deserved when returning home at the war’s end.

“Our country was built on the shoulders of our veterans, and we should honor them every day. I want to say that Westborough, in particular, takes that extremely seriously and I think we can all be proud that, in fact, Westborough does honor its veterans every day,” said Dykema.

State Representative Kane spoke about the symbolism of the American flag and all it represents. “From a very young age, I always understood our flag to represent the very best our country had to offer. I understood that our flag stood as a visual reminder of all the faces I would never see, of all the patriots I would never meet, it stood for all of those who stood for the flag, who stood for me, who stood for you, and their last stand for all that is good and right and free against all that is evil and pervasive in this world.”

Following the speech, Dykema joined Kane at the podium to honor Deborah Penta, for her support and recognition of local veterans, with a citation from the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

After the celebratory speakers’ program, the Flag Raising Ceremony was held in PENTA’s beautiful garden courtyard with special members of the Northborough American Legion Post 234 Color Guard. Musical performances were provided by the Westborough High School Symphonic Band and Westborough High School A Cappella Group.

For the fifth consecutive year, PENTA made a contribution in honor of our veterans and this year, it made a gift to the Elizabeth Dole Foundation’s Hidden Heroes program, which seeks to raise awareness of the challenges military caregivers face and to connect them with resources and support.

The attendees enjoyed breakfast provided by community business partner, Chick-fil-A of Westborough.

For event coverage, please visit Westborough TV to view the full Flag Raising Ceremony. To access event coverage, please visit https://bit.ly/2xd0Ymj.