"...We Have Been Given Courage and Fortitude..."


Sunday marked the 51st Annual Candlelight Thanksgiving Service for the Putnam County Historical Society & Foundry School Museum. Held in the non-denominational Chapel of Our Lady Restoration in Cold Spring, a dramatic piece of Greek Revival architecture perched on a rock bluff over the Hudson, the service paid tribute to past proclamations of thanks by various U.S. leaders.

This one, read by Elliott Sumers, seems particularly timely:

President Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1934

"... During the past year, we have been given courage and fortitude to meet the problems which have confronted us in our national life. Our sense of social justice has deepened. We have been given vision to make new provisions for human welfare and happiness, and in a spirit of mutual helpfulness we have cooperated to translate vision into reality.

More greatly have we turned our hearts and minds to things spiritual. We can truly say, "What profiteth it a nation if it gain the whole world and lose its own soul." With gratitude in our hearts for what has already been achieved, may we, with the help of God, dedicate ourselves anew to work for the betterment of mankind."

Photo courtesy: www.chapelofourlady.com. The chapel was rescued after abandonment and vandalizing, by human hands and those of Mother Nature, in 1970 by a group of concerned citizens. Read more at its Web site above.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

John Guinan: 1952 to 2008

Image
John Guinan died last night after a long, and extraordinarily brave fight with brain cancer. He is survived by his wife Mary Jane, children Sean, Kelly and Casey, granddaughter Zoe, his siblings Margaret, Christine and Jimmy and his father Jim. Your notes and calls to John over the past 18 months have meant more than you'll ever know. Rarely does someone hear such widespread affection from so many corners of the world. He deserved all of the love but took none of it for granted. And he changed many lives, my own included, in big and small ways. The family will hold a wake from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday: Clinton Funeral Home 21 Parrott Street Cold Spring, NY 10516 (845) 265-3333 John's funeral will be at 10 a.m. on Saturday: Our Lady of Loretto 24 Fair Street Cold Spring, NY 10516 (845) 265-3781 In lieu of flowers, the family has asked that donations be made to Braking the Cycle and Team Guinan. This link will take you directly to Team Guinan's donation...
Read more

James Guinan: December 27, 1925 to April 1, 2009

Image
James Guinan died last night at Tampa University Community Hospital following complications from a chest cold. He was 83 years old. Jim was with his daughters Christine and Margaret, his son-in-law Mike and some of his grandchildren. His friends and family in the Hudson Highlands were fortunate to have seen him here in "God's Country," as he called it, around St. Patrick's Day. The family is still working out details and timing of the memorial services, and I will update everything here when they are ready, but here is the information they have so far. They thank everyone for their thoughts, good wishes and prayers: Visitation: Monday, April 13th and Tuesday April 14th Clinton Funeral Home 21 Parrott Street, Cold Spring, NY 10516(845) 265-3333 2-4PM and 7-9PM (both days) Funeral and Mass: Wednesday, April 15th Our Lady of Loretto 24 Fair Street, Cold Spring, NY 10516(845) 265-3781 10AM Interment to follow at the Cold Spring Cemetery He was the Mayor of Garrison, he ...
Read more

How to Leave a Message

1. Click on the link that says "Comments" at the end of any posted item (including this one). 2. A new page will pop up. Type your comment in the white box for text to the right. 3. To protect against spam, Blogger requires that you copy a strange mix of letters it presents. Simply retype those letters in the space that says "Word Verification." 4. Choose your identity. The easiest way is to hit "Name/URL" and then just type your name, or a pen name you'd like to write under, in the space that says "Name." Ignore the URL box. If you'd rather be anonymous, click the "Anonymous" button instead. 5. Hit publish. You're done. Thanks for being a part of this community.
Read more