Vinnie Cammarano
Key Points
- Retired Army Col. Loretta Forlaw, a Vietnam War nurse, urged recognition of military nurses' trauma during care at the Apopka Veterans Day ceremony.
- Mayor Nick Nesta stated veterans' service continues through various community roles and thanked families for their sacrifices.
- VFW Post 10147 plans to place wreaths on veterans' graves on Dec. 19 at Edgewood/Greenwood Cemetery as part of Wreaths Across America.
Retired Army Col. Loretta Forlaw asked community members to consider what military nurses carry home from war as the city honored veterans on Tuesday at Kit Land Nelson Park.
Forlaw, the guest speaker at the city’s Veterans Day ceremony, is a Vietnam War nurse and past commander of VFW Post 10147 Apopka/Altamonte Springs. In addressing the audience, she said many military nurses are women and called for greater recognition of their service, including the trauma of caring for soldiers with mortal wounds.
“I don’t think most people think of women veterans in combat,” Forlaw said.
Forlaw said military nurses and other health care workers can experience trauma from caring for mortally wounded soldiers. She recalled the young men she cared for in Vietnam and spoke about a nurse who served in Iraq and Afghanistan and helped advance efforts to carry blood in ambulances.
In his opening remarks, Mayor Nick Nesta said veterans’ service often continues after they leave the military, as they become teachers, first responders, business owners and volunteers. He also thanked the families who endured long separations and missed birthdays and holidays.
“Service may begin with one person, but its impact reaches much further than just them,” Nesta said.
The ceremony took place at the park’s new gazebo, a $250,000 replacement designed to give performers nearly twice the stage space of the previous gazebo, according to earlier reporting by the Apopka Chief.
After the ceremony, VFW volunteer Martin DeCarlo said Forlaw’s remarks were “spot on” and that people hear too little about what women did for those who went to war. He encouraged residents to visit the post’s museum, where some of his father’s Navy memorabilia is on display, including a hat and a photo of the aircraft carrier USS Coral Sea.
Fellow volunteer Charlene Burke, whose late husband served 21 years in the Air Force and twice in Vietnam, said she has volunteered with the VFW for eight years. She said the post welcomes visitors, including people who have never served in the military.
“It’s a wonderful place to come, come and talk to people, meet people,” Burke said.
Forlaw also invited residents to volunteer to place wreaths or sponsor wreaths for the local Wreaths Across America observance. VFW Post 10147 will help place wreaths on veterans’ graves next month.
The Wreaths Across America ceremony is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Dec. 19, with wreath placement immediately afterward, at the Edgewood/Greenwood Cemetery in Apopka, according to the post’s Wreaths Across America page.