Transcript: Mayor Adams Hosts Breakfast Reception Celebrating Veterans Day

November 9, 2023

Mayor Eric Adams: Thank you. Thank you, and you know, you cannot say it enough. "Thank you," oftentimes when people see you and they state "thank you for your service," sometimes it has become just a routine gesture. But I want to tell you thank you for your service in a very authentic way, because I often think about my Uncle Joe, two years ago I recall talking about him at a Veteran Affairs program, and my commissioner, OEM, went and looked up his record.

And it was really surreal when he handed it over to me and I was able to read how Uncle Joe at 19-years-old lost his life in Vietnam. And years previous to that when I was in Vietnam, I was always drawn to what happened to Uncle Joe at 19, a young man who was willing to serve for his country. It didn't matter who was the president, who was the governor. It didn't matter anything. All he knew, that we had a flag that even when the rocket's red glares or the bomb bursting in the air, it gave proof through the night that the flag was still there.

And that those bombs don't have to be physical bombs. It could be the bombs of Covid, it could be the bombs of uncertainties, the bombs of economic challenges. No matter what it is, when you look up you see that our flag is always still there. And I'm clear on that.

And it breaks my heart — I say over and over again — when the poll comes out and says 52 percent of Americans won't defend this country if it's attacked by foreign enemies. Well, I say to you, I'm one of the 48 percenters. I still pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

I still believe that this is the only country where "dream" is attached to its name. There's not a German dream, not a French dream, not a Polish dream, but dammit, there's an American dream, and that dream stands for something. And that dream is alive. We are able to sit under the tree of freedom because you watered that tree with your blood, your commitment, your desire and your willingness to defend our country.

And I think it's imperative right now that we need to go into our schools, our colleges, our high schools and find those Uncle Joe's of today, those 19 year old young people that are benefiting from the success of this amazing country and now don't believe that this is the greatest country on the globe. They need to see that people are not lining the borders of this country to leave, they're lining the borders to come in. We have the best product on the globe, and that's the American product, and that product is what it is.

That product is what it is because we have men and women like you that never gave up, always willing to defend this country. And so I'm proud when I look at my administration and I see someone like Commissioner Hendon who's running our Mayor's Office, Department of Veteran Services, to make sure we can get it right. Or I see councilmen like Bob Holden who has a realistic, practical approach in life that is not only about dollars and cents, it's about common sense— something that seems to have evaded our country that we can't have a common sense approach.

But he also can talk about the narrative of his dad. So many of our dads and our moms served in these wars and battles and made sure that we could be where we are here today.

But also during the most troubling time I can lean on to military experience, of a real time experience of Zach Iscol who is heading up what we are doing in coordinating around the immigrant and the migrant and asylum seeker crisis as day to day he's here to serve.

You don't stop serving when you leave your branch of service; when you love America, you serve all the way through from beginning to end. And we must serve you. You should not adorn military attire and then come back to your homeland and cannot adorn the suit in corporate America, or the uniform of a Police Department, or participate in your country's prominence as it moves forward.

Our prosperity depends on you. And we opened this house in the most graceful way possible, to let you know Gracie Mansion is your home. This is the home you fought for. This is the home you defended. And I'm proud. I'm proud to have you here today as we honor our veterans. It's not a day off, it's a day of recognition. It's a day of saying thank you for what you have done and what you will continue to do. Thank you very much. God bless New York City, God bless America, God bless you.

Commissioner James Hendon, Department of Veterans' Services: Let's have another round for Mayor Adams, everybody.

At this time, I'm humbled and honored to introduce our military speaker from our featured branch, General Charles R. Hamilton, Commanding General, U.S. Army Materiel Command as the 21st Commanding General of U.S. Materiel Command, General Hamilton leads one of the army's largest commands with 165,000 military, civilian and contractor employees impacting all 50 states and more than 150 countries.

Now, General Hamilton enlisted in the U.S. Army from his hometown of Houston, Texas. Now, he may be from H town but we are happy to claim him and call him a New Yorker today — you're part of the Big Apple, sir. Ladies and gentleman, General Charles Hamilton.

General Charles Hamilton, United States Army: Good morning. All right. I think this crowd is already fired up and ready to go. Commissioner Hendon, thank you for that great introduction; and Mayor Adams, thank you for that strong endorsement of those 19-year-olds to join our service. A special recognition to our Gold Star Families and especially our veterans today.

And I'd be remiss if I didn't recognize who just joined us on the stage. I just met him, but he's been a hero of mine for many years as I've ridden on his shoulders, he just didn't know it. And that's our Buffalo Soldier, Roy Caldwood. Let's give everybody a big hand.

It is indeed incredible to be here helping to recognize and pay tribute to the more than 210,000 veterans who call New York City home. From the breakfast this morning to the parade Saturday morning when 20,000 strong will March up Fifth Avenue, New York City is showing the world how to properly recognize and honor its veterans.

And it's important, but it's always been important. In December of 1776, the Continental Army was struggling through a brutal winter. Thomas Paine wrote these famous words: these are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will in this crisis shrink from the service of their country, but he that stands by it now deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.

Ladies and gentleman, the veterans we honor this morning are our winter soldiers. They are the men and women who didn't shrink from service but rose to the occasion, who served honorably and returned home asking for nothing more than to share in the peace and prosperity that they helped secure.

They are soldiers Eric Geressy from Staten Island who received the Silver Star for organizing the defense of a combat outpost in 2007 in Iraq. They are soldiers Jack Jacobs from Brooklyn who saved the life of 13 of his fellow soldiers in 1968 during the Vietnam War. He received the Medal of Honor.

They are soldiers like Roy Caldwood of Harlem who received the Bronze Star during World War II for volunteering to remain in the city on an imminent attack to save the life of a wounded civilian. And Paine wrote in 1776 and it remains true in 2023: these veterans, these winter soldiers deserve our love and our thanks. Please join me in another round of applause for Mr. Caldwood and all of our veterans.

Right now there are 16.2 million veterans in the United States. That's a little less than five percent of our total population, and the percentage joining the military has been below one percent for many years. Now, Mr. Caldwood, who is just to my left, I've got to tell a little story about him since he stood up.

He has a personal trainer. He can still do anywhere between 25 to 45 pushups. Look, he's definitely in that top one percent. I think if I tried to sign him up today I think he'd do it. I think he was trying to follow me back to Redstone Arsenal to join my team there.

So, why does that one percent of Americans choose to serve? One percent. One percent. Why do they volunteer? Why do they raise their right hand and take an oath to support and defend the constitution of the United States against all enemies.

There are millions of veterans with millions of reasons, but I think there are few consistent themes. Some join because they've drawn to the notion of service, perhaps a family member served. They use words like duty and honor, and talk about serving one's country, defended the nation and patriotism.

Some join for more personal reasons. I've heard some soldiers talk about they like to travel, get in better shape, structure, discipline, education and wanting to develop leadership skills. Some talk about even traveling and seeing the world.

Whatever the motivations, volunteering to serve in the military requires a level of a commitment rarely seen in any other profession. I've seen that level of commitment on display throughout my career both in and out of combat. I saw it every day when I commanded Taskforce Lifeliner in Afghanistan in 2013.

We were conducting 32 convoys a week into a known threat. I expected at some point during that deployment that one soldier would say, sir...or sorry, Major, I don't want to go. I'm tired. I don't want to go into a known threat. I want to sit down. Not one soldier said that they didn't want to go during that entire deployment; in fact, it was just the opposite: they volunteered again.

I'll never forget July 4th, 2013, at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan. I had the honor of serving as the reenlistment officer for soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division and the Pennsylvania National Guard, again, volunteering to serve the country at a time of war. Amid all that danger and hardship, these soldiers recommitted themselves to the mission, to the soldier to their left and right, to the Army, and to our great nation.

So, when I think about why people join the military, regardless of individual motivations, we're all united by a commitment to something greater than ourselves. In the end, I think that might be the reason why we serve; and more importantly, why we continue to serve.

And that gives me hope, because although we continue to live in an uncertain and complex and dangerous world— and we're all seeing that play out on the news each day— there's still millions of Americans who are willing, eager to serve something greater than themselves; and in my book, there's nothing greater than the United States Army. Ladies and gentleman, may God continue to bless our veterans, their families, and may God bless the United States of America. Be all you can be. This we will defend. Thank you.

Commissioner Hendon: Thank you, sir, for those words.

Now, on behalf of the City of New York, giving this gift to you as representative of not just the U.S. Army but all armed forces. Please take this token of appreciation. It's a Glass Apple. The apple represents strength, it represents purity, and we just believe that this embodies what all of our services are, and so we'd love for you to accept this from us. Thank you so much, sir.

General Hamilton: Thank you. I appreciate it.

Commissioner Hendon: Now we would like to take a moment to recognize members of our veteran community who go beyond the call to help their fellow military families and fellow vets. We highlight these people as veteran community change makers. Veteran community change makers is a series whereby DVS acknowledges service members past and present, spouses, caregivers, civilian volunteers and other practitioners who actively support our veteran ecosystem.

By their actions, they serve as catalysts. They embody the phrase "if you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together." So, without further ado, I want to acknowledge the following individuals.

Donee Smalls, Terry Holliday, Wendy McClinton, John Rowan, "Mama V" Viviana Decohan, Dr. Jacob Kelly, Chaplain Marisa Estrella, Major Sharon Sweeting Lindsay, Elizabeth Hillman, Matt Butler, Mercedes Elias, Wilfred Cotto, Richard Pusateri, Nancy Preston, J. Alexander Martin, Ryan Graham, Andie Coakley and Kathryn Cross. Please give these change makers a round.

And now saving the best for last. Before the drill team performs, I'd like to call to the stage 101 year old U.S. Army veteran, World War II veteran, Buffalo Soldier, member of the all Black 92nd Second Infantry Division, the Buffalo Soldiers' namesake, New York City Department of Correction retiree and recipient of the Correction Department's highest accolade, its medal of honor, valor and merit, ladies and gentlemen, please give a round for Mr. Roy Caldwood.

Also we acknowledge his daughter Diane, too. Anything you want to say? Well, now you earned the mic. C'mon. C'mon. Anything you want to say.

Diane Caldwood: While my dad is gathering himself, I want to say on behalf of my 101 year old dad and my family, we are so appreciative and grateful for this. And this is actually helping to bring his dream to life, which is to give a voice to the former Buffalo soldiers who went before him in the 92nd Infantry Division who didn't have a chance to speak. And he hopes that his words and his stories can get out, and hopefully somebody might do a documentary to get him in the flesh while he's still here. Okay, papi.

Roy Caldwood: I want to thank our Honorable Mayor. I'm overwhelmed. I want to thank everyone. 14,000 was in the 92nd Division, and I keep asking myself, why me? Why have I...I...I don't have words. I don't have.

When World War II broke out, Blacks in particular had to ask themselves one question: should I go? Should I respond? They haven't been too nice to me here. You can't go here, you can't go there. You can't sit here, you can't sit there. They come down with their bayonets, get up! You don't sit there. You shouldn't have a gun. I was in Patrick Henry, Virginia, POE, Port of Embarkation. The guys came in with their guns; given picks and shovels, unload the boat, load the boat, this, that, you name it. I ain't goin' on.

But when I received my notice...before I received my notice I asked myself, should I go? Would I be better off if Hitler won, Mussolini? I remember him in Ethiopia, and you guys are too young to know of Ethiopia. The natives with their spears and arrows, and the Italianos with their guns and this and that, I won't go into all of that. I said, I don't think so. I don't think I'd be better off, I think I'd be worse off. I wrote a book, Making the Right Move. That was a right move.

A lot of things have happened to me since that time. During the war, I was fortunate enough, God, I've been very, I've been blessed over and over and over and over. I remember standing in Italy looking at 50 Germans who peacefully surrendered to our little platoon. They saw us do something, they had made up their minds they were going to fight to the death.

A lot of their friends and so forth were all gone, a few of the guys that were left. And our infantry was getting ready to come down to take care of them, and they had a choice. They were going to fight to the death. And they saw us do something, it was a humanitarian mission. And they checked it out, they found out that "they're not going to kill us, they're humanitarians."

But you know how they talked to us, how they told us that they're not going to kill us? They used their mortars, and they dropped one mortar on us and they knew that we would stop walking. I was walking on this, what they call Purple Heart Stretch. And they wanted us to stop walking because they wanted to tell us something.

So, they dropped the mortar on us, so we hit the ground. And I was escorting some women, me and two other soldiers. And when they dropped that mortar, we all hit the ground. And I said, well, they missed. These guys don't miss. They had what they called in those days the 88 mortar.

So, I lay there and I said, well, they missed me. They missed me. But the next one is not going to miss. So, I'm waiting for the next one, and it didn't come. So, I raised my head up, I saw...I'm not going to tell...go that far. Anyhow, these guys surrendered to us.

We had them lined up, and I walked down and I looked at each guy, each German. And I said, these guys can one day come to the United States and they'll be accepted; I said, I will never be accepted. When I leave here, Italy, and a lot of the Italians told me, don't go home, stay here. You're one of us, and so forth.

I said, I'll go home to things just like I left. I will never be accepted. And it took me 101 years to realize that I am accepted, more than I ever, ever, ever could imagine.

No matter where I go. I go to Tampa, they give me a day. This April the 5th is your day. I won't go all through all of that. I don't know why. One out of 14,000? I shake my head. I shake my head. But I thank God, and this country has come a long way.

When they broke up the 92nd Division… I'm gonna stop. My boss is telling me to stop, I'm going to stop.

I'm going to stop. I'm going to stop. I have to stop. When I got...we had caught I think it was the last batch of Germans, because in a few days after that, word came out that World War II is over, the campaign and the Italian is over.

Then three days after that we got the notice, take the "Buffalo" off your left shoulder. Put on the 5th Army patch. There is no more 92nd division. Some guys cried. Some guys hollered, I'm not going to take that Buffalo off my arm! I won't go into all of that.

But the Buffalo soldiers did its part, and it was time for the Buffalo soldier to go. Integration was the best thing that happened to this country. I won't say any more.

I thank you guys. My boss is telling me it's time to go.

Commissioner Hendon: Don't sit down just yet, Mr. Caldwood. We want to ask that General Hamilton, recipient of a Glass Apple, present another Glass Apple to Mr. Caldwood. Please.

Sir, on behalf of all the veterans who have served and the active duty members that are here today, I just want to thank you for letting me ride on your shoulders all these years. We only met today, but if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be standing here. So, I want to salute you.

I have to say it, we're witnessing excellence here, everybody, in this room. The General, the Buffalo soldiers, this is excellence y'all. Please. Yes.

Thank you so much, sir. Thank you.

Speaking of excellence, please join us in witnessing a display of excellence presented by the U.S. Army Drill Team. Drill Team soldiers assigned to headquarters company 4th Battalion Third U.S. Infantry Regiment— the old guard— and let's give the drill team a hand.

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