Transcript: Mayor De Blasio Delivers Remarks at The Intreped Sea, Air, & Space Museum Memorial Day Commemoration

May 26, 2014

Mayor de Blasio: There’s so much to be thankful for today, so much to think about. This is one of those days when we’re thoughtful and we’re reflective. We take a break from everything rushing around us and we think a little more deeply. So one thing I’d like to say as mayor of this city – some people a long time ago decided that this ship needed to be saved, needed to be preserved, needed to be a source of memory and strength to all of us. And we have been so enriched in this city and in this nation by the Intrepid being here and being available to all. So let’s thank Ken Fisher, let’s thank Bruce Mosler, for all they have done to make the Intrepid something we all cherish.

[Applause]

Let’s thank the president, Susan Marenoff-Zausner for her tremendous leadership of this institution.

[Applause]

And Mr. [inaudible], the head of the – the president of the Crewman’s Association – thank you for your great leadership as well and for all you represent.

[Applause]

I want to thank Admiral Gortney. His words were powerful and energizing and focused us all. I want to thank Captain Houk and Congresswoman Maloney – all who have been a part of this ceremony.

It’s always right to thank the leaders and the dignitaries who do so much on our behalf, but profoundly important is to thank the people who every day defend us. And I hope for all you who have been here for Fleet Week, you recognize the welcome extended to you by the people of New York City. It’s out of deep appreciation, it’s out of deep understanding of all you do – the sacrifices you make, the risks you take for all of us. So on behalf of all 8.4 million New Yorkers, I want to say to all of our men and women in uniform, a profound thank you and God bless you for what you do for this country.

[Applause]

Now, the Intrepid has always meant a lot to me. Whenever I’ve been here it doesn’t feel abstract. It doesn’t feel like I’m in a museum. It feels like I’m touching something that was part of our own family’s lives. You know, for me and for my wife, we had parents from the World War II generation. And on Memorial Day, it’s so touching to think about the stories we heard throughout our youths, the stories we heard from those who served – how crucial it was a time in their lives when they felt they were doing all they could for their fellow human being, a time when they always were looking out for their buddy in combat or the person working next to them on the assembly line.

We had a family – all four of the parents – my wife’s father served in the army in Europe, my wife’s mother served in the Springfield, Massachusetts armory, my mother served in the Office of War Information, my father served in the Pacific in the army in the Seventh Division. And the stories I heard from my father, who was in places like the Aleutian Islands, and Kwajalein, and Leyte Gulf, and, ultimately, Okinawa, talked about ships like the Intrepid with awe – talked about it because they saw the Intrepid and the other great ships as their protectors and they knew that these ships were therefore targets for the enemy. In fact, this ship suffered five kamikaze airplane strikes – which is extraordinary that it came through – and it earned that title Intrepid for sure. And for those who served, they knew their lives were on the line in that conflict and so many since. And when you heard the stories – what’s so amazing is what they motivated themselves to do each and every day, against all odds. And the people they spoke of – the ones who came back, but, most powerfully, the ones who didn’t – every time I heard a story of someone who didn’t come back it was obviously an act of keeping that person’s memory alive, respecting all they had done for their country, cherishing who they were, what they believed in, and how hard they fought. And everyone who served understands that and works hard to keep that memory alive.

Now, for my father, those battles he went through – including Okinawa, one of the bloodiest in the history of this nation – he was so honored to serve his country, no matter what was thrown at him. And, I have to tell you, and I have to be honest – because this is a solemn occasion it requires us to be honest – I have to be honest and say, the army was not my father’s first choice. My father was about my height. He grew up near the water, he always loved the sea. After Pearl Harbor, he wanted to go into the Navy – and I just mentioned it earlier to the admiral – the Navy was not interested in a 6’ 5” man. So they, with the kindest regards, they sent him packing to the army. And he served with all his heart.

And, toward the end of the battle of Okinawa, a Japanese grenade came near him, went off – he lost half of his leg. And he came back to this country and he had to fight again – and every veteran knows this – you know it from your own lives, you know it from the people you’ve served with – he had to fight again to physically rehabilitate. And he had to fight against things that were harder to identify – so many other challenges.

And this afflicts the men and women who have served us to this day. We have such an endless debt to them. Think about it on Memorial Day. We owe all our hearts to remembering those we’ve lost, to bringing them back powerfully in our memory, to being inspired by them to serve in our own ways just as well as they did. And we also need to remember today to serve all of those who served us. Because no matter what they went through, they carry so much with them and they always deserve our help – not just our praise – our help. It’s time to make sure – with everything we’ve got – that we never say no to a veteran in need. In this city, we want to end the reality of veterans who are homeless – we don’t want that to be a part of our city anymore – that shouldn’t be a part of any city anymore.

[Applause]

And we know that veterans carry with them such extraordinary skill, such focus, such leadership – they should be the first people we work to help get the jobs and opportunity economically they deserve, because a veteran who doesn’t have a good job is a not a veteran who has received all he deserves from his country, his state, and his city.

[Applause]

So I’ll finish by saying this is very much an alive day. Yes, it’s a day of memory, a day of contemplation, a day where we should spend a moment thinking of each and every person we know who served and is no longer with us. We should cherish them, we should appreciate them. But then it’s a day to be inspired to take the kind of steps they would’ve taken – to reach to our fellow Americans who have served us and make sure we are treating them with the dignity and respect and support they deserve, and to be as good them in all we do.

This ship is called the Intrepid because no matter what was thrown at it, it kept going, it kept protecting, it kept serving. Let’s take that spirit with us as we leave here today. And let’s serve our fellow man and woman who was there for us. Thank you and God bless you.