Southwick resident Gene Theroux speaks about the Purple Heart Trail at the ceremony on Tuesday. (Photo by Greg Fitzpatrick)
SOUTHWICK – A ceremony was held in the town hall lobby before Tuesday night’s Select Board meeting. The ceremony was to make an official proclamation for the town of Southwick to become a part of the Purple Heart Trail.
At the last Select Board meeting, a request was made to extend the trail into Southwick. Already spanning the entirety of Route 202 in Westfield, the Purple Heart Trail was able to extend farther south on Route 202.
There will be two Purple Heart Trail signs to be exclusively put on Route 202, and four Purple Heart Community signs that will be scattered across different areas of the town.
To start off the ceremony, Gene Theroux, a Southwick resident and past commander of American Legion Post 124 of Westfield, thanked all of the veterans and residents of the town for coming.
Theroux worked on putting the project together and was thankful for the support he had received.
“The support from the Select Board and from the town was outstanding,” said Theroux.
There was also representation of the Purple Heart in attendance at the ceremony. Thomas Prasenski, a member of the Albany, N.Y. Chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, spoke about the dedication he has seen from the communities in the Western Massachusetts area.
“Your Purple Heart support is absolutely second to none,” said Prasenski. “I seriously want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
VFW Post 872 of Southwick also showed their appreciation for what it means to have the Purple Heart Trail in Southwick.
“It really does mean a lot to the veterans in town,” said Post 872 Commander Ryan Dietert.
Towards the end of the ceremony, Select Board Chairman Russ Fox announced the official proclamation for the Purple Heart Trail. The signs are expected to be up by Memorial Day.
