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Sag Harbor - Sag Harbor residents stood solemnly through the stormy morning of Saturday, Nov. 15, rain indecipherable from tears on their faces, as local, county and state officials dedicated the bridge that spans the cove and is gateway to the their hometown as the Lance Corporal Jordan C. Haerter Veterans Memorial Bridge.
Observers lined both sides of the street leading up to the bridge and crowded around the tent that housed the notable guests of honor, including Haerter’s father and mother, Christian Haerter and JoAnn Lylee, other Gold Star Mothers and Fathers who have lost sons and daughters in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, and 40 of Haerter’s fellow Marines.
The official name change for the bridge passed the New York State Senate and Assembly on May 21 and was signed by Gov. David Paterson on July 7. The dedication ceremony on Nov. 15 was coupled with the presentation of a granite memorial in honor of Haerter’s heroism and sacrifice. “A young boy or girl will see this monument and ask their parents, ‘Who was Jordan Haerter?’” County Executive Steve Levy predicted, “And they’ll tell them, ‘This is a man who gave his life so that we may live in peace.’”
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