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| 波士頓市長吳弭展示簽署的命令。 |
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| 吳弭市長簽署退伍軍人房屋稅擴大豁免命令。 |
(Boston Orange 綜合報導)
波士頓市長吳弭 (Michelle Wu)在11月10日，退伍軍人大遊行之後，簽署命令，2026年起，退伍軍人的物業稅 (Property tax)豁免額將隨著消費者物價指數調整，每年增加。波士頓市政府同時推出第二輪的”彌平差距補助款”，個別退伍軍人可申請最高9999元。
今年8月，麻州州長奚莉 (Maura Healey)簽署了”英雄法案 (The Hero Act)”，容許地方市鎮自行制定退伍軍人物業稅豁免額度。
波士頓市市議員Brian
Worrell隨後提案，市議會通過，市長吳弭簽署成命令，照消費者物價指數制定的基本豁免額，每年調整一次，並從2026會計年度開始實施。有資格享有的退伍軍人包括紫心勳章獲得者，金星父母、因服役而残疾的退伍军人及倖存配偶。
這新辦法的目的，是提高退伍军人的房屋購買力，以及擁有房屋的機會。
吳弭市長在退伍軍人大遊行這天，當著30多個參加遊行組織的數百人面前簽署了新條例，她還宣佈，啟動第2輪共20萬美元的「退伍軍人的彌平差距 (Bridge the Gap)」補助款，支持和退伍軍家庭合作的當地組織。
今年5月啟動的第一輪補助，發給了12個組織，現在的第2輪，即日起至2025年3月6日接受申請。舉凡協助退伍軍人及其家庭解決房屋、交通、健康與保健，法律等事務的非牟利組織。都可申請。個別人士申請，最高可得9999元。
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| 軍樂隊參加遊行。 |
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| 消防局中的退伍軍人參加遊行。 |
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| 麻州參議員Lydia Edwards也是退伍軍人。 |
Commissioner Robert Santiago, City of Boston Veterans’ Services
you and respect ain' gratitude today and always, here in the city of Boston, every day is Veterans Day. So thank you all to all my fellow veterans to all the families of my fellow veterans, and thank you for your continued service to our city, to our state, and to our country. May we all carry forward this legacy of loyalty and service, honoring your courage and commitment for generations to come thank you.
Now, at this time, I would like to pull up, representing the American Legion, districtrictiv commander, and his shipmate, who also is a recipient of the Dever Sampson award this year commander Meredith Tuitt., good afternoon isn't this beautiful. Look at the sea of faces out there.
Talk by Mary-dith Tuitt, American Legion
My name is Mary-dith Tuitt .
I am the commander of the William E. Carter American Legion Post 16 out of Madapian, right? Thank you, thank you. I'm senior vice commander for District Seven South County, and I want to bring forward to stand with me.
I will commander for the Department of Massachusetts, Nelson, commander Nelson, come on over. So this is Nelson Blake and our cast national commander Jay Comier, and he's also standing here. We want to save from the American Legion family to all of our veteran organizations and to all of our veteran families, military attached, and everyone, thank you so much for your service.
Thank you for your continued service and thank you for those of you out their supporting us. Anything you want to take commander? I govern it all.
commander for the Department of Massachusetts, Nelson Blake;
All right. Thank you so much and bring him back to the podium with Commissioner. Commission.
Introduction of Lydia Edwards
Thank you, Commander. and now I would like to whatroduce, and it's my honor to introduce our grand marshal produceious parade, first Lieutenant Lydia Edwards. But she's not just the first lieutenant. She's also a state senator, so Senator Lydia Edwards is a career advocate, activist, and voice on behalf of society's most vulnerable.
She was raised all over the world by her military mom, but chose to make East Boston her home, prior to being elected to the state senate and Boston city council, Lydia worked extensively in the legal field. She worked as a public interest attorney with greater Boston legal services focusing on labor issues such as fighting for access to unemployment insurance, back wages, fair treatment for domestic workers and combati human trafficking. Senator Edwards coordinated a statewide campaign to pass the domestic workers bill of rights, and she won.
Following the bill's passage, she was named Bostonian of the Year, honorable mentioned by the Boston Globe. In February of 2023, Senator Edwards was named chair of the joint house housing committee in the Massachusetts state legislature. In addition to a role as a state senator, she also served as first lieutenant in the Massachusetts National Guard workman as a judge advocate general, where she addresses military legal matters, ladies and gentlemen, Lydia Edwards. apologize, my voice is a little bit off today.
Talk by Lydia Edwards
I hope you can hear me. My name is Lydia Edwards, uh, before I was any of those things, I was an Air Force brat. My mother served for 23 years in the United States Air Force.
I can trace my family back to 1822. in this country. I know the names of the slaves and I know my ancestors histories, and I've seen the draft cards from my great great grandfathers served in World War two and my grandfather served great great grandfathers served in World War I and my grandfather served the World War II. My great uncle served and died in Korea on heartbreak hill on October 9, 1951.
My uncle, Tyron, who I did not meet, he served to Vietnam, and while he left the war, the war did not leave him, and he came back to Chicago and took his life. My mother served. She joined in in 71 during Vietnam and left during Iraq one.
And I'm serving now. I joined just a year ago, but I want you to know that politics is new to my family, but service as I've demonstrated is not. It's what we do.
It's what I've learned is part of being an American, part of being a patriot is service to country. And what I love about patriotism, what I am passionate about patriotism is that it serves no political party. It serves, and it is not owned by any particular group of people background or financial investment.
It is in each and every one of us and is one of the most beautiful things that we can all do. A lot of people ask themselves or think oftentimes that patriotism is in the flags that you carry. It's in the the blind faith in the nation.
It's in a lot of different things that are more performative. To me, that's not patriotism. Patriotism is like my faith.
When they ask, do you know, they will know your Christian by your love. then I say that the same thing about patriotism, they will know your patriot by your service, by your commitment to others. True patriots are not offended by criticism. or caused to be a better nation. true patriots I'm not concerned with propaganda or political parties. True patriots get to serve unapologetically. when I think of patriotism, I think of my uncle.
I'll Solomon. He was 21 years old, and he was picked along with Bob Finley and Walter Scholz to leave the charge up Heartbreak Hill. Military brass said it would be at seven day campaign to take the North Korean Ridge.
It was 30 days in mass casualties. They led that hill, they went up the hill together, the three of them in their just barely men. young men Bob Billy took fire first. Walter short second he managed to crawl down Bob Finley had to be carried down by my uncle.
He begged to be let go. He screamed out in pain. He said just let me die.
My uncle wouldn't let that happen. He carried him down with another man. He went back up and carried down another man.
That 21 years old, he said there's still men up there and he went back up and never came back down. I only know about that because my grandmother passed away in 2008. and I was going through her things and I saw a bunch of letters from a man named Walter Scholz. I had no idea who this man was or why my grandmother was getting letters from him.
I looked him up in the phone book, still had those back then. and I called the every single swills I could find in Brownsville, Michigan, which is what, um, where he was from, the address had. He answered the phone. and I introduced myself and said hello, Mr. Schultz, her name is Lydia Edwards. I'm the great piece of uh Sel manro.
He said, you are. I said, yes, sir. And I said I want you to know my Dallas passed away, that was my grandmother's name.
He said I I figured she hadn't responded in a while. I said I your letters are interesting. I want to know why you wrote my family all these years.
And he proceeded to tell me the story about some. I know my history because of a young, some of immigrants, German immigrants from Brownsville, Michigan, told me my family's history that war story. But what is most important to me is he said, you know, he was a hero, he died, a hero's death.
But he he didn't save me, he said, up and like, do you want his number? I said, yeah, I want his number. I called Bob. and Bob was surprised to hear my voice and know that I even existed.
And I said, Bob, could you tell me what happened? And he said, well, I talked about how he got injured, how it was two black men who carried him down. and how he wanted me to know the tears coming. I can hear it in his voice, that he's lived a good life.
He wanted me to know more than anything in the world. He has no idea why he lived my soom was taken. He wanted me to know he was a man of faith, he got his education.
He was a coach, he was a teacher. He's been living two lives, he said, to compensate for the fact that someone couldn't live. He cried and you that I want you to know I'm a good man.
I have done everything I can. I am a good man. I said, sir, you don't need to say anything to me.
I just wanted to know the history. He died a month later. I say this story because my great uncle was part of the military experiment of integration.
It was the first time, formerally, it allowed people of all colors to serve equally. He did not care the colors of his comrades when he went up that hill. He did not ask where they were from a political party they had. what they supported for who they supported for president.
They were his people. and he was willing to die for them. So while you may some cynics may say he died for nothing, I think he died from what I am seeing right here in front of me. A beautiful nation. all colors and backgrounds, proud of itself, not perfect, but marching towards more patriot nation.
I want to thank so many people who came before me, the women, veterans, the men, people of all colors, gays, lesbians, transgendered individuals who serve this country, served it perfectly, served it with all that they had, some dying for this country, because they loved this country, while sometimes wondering if the country loved them. I want you to know patriotism. is why we're all here today, and it comes in many forms. I'm proud to be a patriot.
I'm proud to stand for this country and serve this country. I do that in my uncle's name. I do that for this country to be a better country.
And I want to thank all of those veterans who have done that and made this a better country. So today, he celebrate them, we celebrate their sacrifice. We acknowledge a sacrifice that not only theirs but their wives, their husbands, their children's as well.
And so all of those who served and left the war, but the war didn't leave you, please know you are not forgotten as you struggle on your day to day. Your mental health is still something we need to be responsible for. I'll make this final component, policy is everything, and patriotism and respect for our veterans needs to be reflected even more in our policies and how we treat them.
One thing I'm proud of that we passed the state house is reason law that says that all portable housing programs and that he's of your town that opts in 10% won't be reserved for veterans only. assuring that they have access to those vouchers, asserving that they have access to be affordable units in the first time homeowner programs, all the cities have to do is opted. That's what we do. So, you can hear my voices leaving, but my passion is still here.
Thank you so much for this honor to be the Grand Marshshal this year. I will continue to fight for veterans. I will continue to represent and I will continue to fight to make sure that we have more patriots in this nation.
Commissioner Santiago
Thank you. I, thank you, Senator Edwards very profound words. Thank you very much for also sharing our destory with you, and yes, uh the city of Boston works with her and a state legislature on policies to ensure that our veterans and our neighbors who in the city of Boston are taking care of.
At this time, I would like to pull up our city council president, who also comes from a family of service members. I know her a cousin very well who happens to get a shipmate of mine. ladies and gentlemen, I like to pull up here.
City Council President Ruthzee Louijeune
Good afternoon, everyone.
I am Ruthzee Louijeune, president of the Boston City council and it is a joy to be with all of you today for Veterans Day as we honor all of you who have served our country. We thank you. There's actually nothing we can do that will be enough to show you how much we value what it means for you to sacrifice for your families to sacrifice so much for this country, so we thank you, we honor you, I thank you, Senator Edwards, for your service.
I thank you, may oroop for your leadership here in the city to make sure that we are always front and center caring about the issues that matter most to our veterans. I was very proud to work on this legislation to co sponsor it with the vice president of the council, counselor Brian Worrell, so I wanted credit to him, the work that we're doing on around the property taxes for our veterans. It's because we care about our veterans and other service here to our cities.
We on the Boston City council, uh we have a a counselor who himself is a veteran counselor at Blynn, who is also the chair of our veterans committee on the Boston City C council. We thank you for your service. It's all to enjoy committee to be here with my colleagues, uh, counselor at large, Julia Maia.
We have two counselors on the Boston team council who are military boms, counsel forage and counselor Murphy, uh, a number of my colleagues like counselorersey and so many others have family members who are veterans. So this is personal for a lot of us. We know that sometimes we show up for our country, but the country doesn't always show up for you.
And so we are doing that work correct that harm every day on the Boston City Council in partnership with our legislature, so I hope that you feel respected, loved and honored by your city every single day will work to make sure that our legislation reflects how much we value you. So thank you and happy veterans Day. pass it back to the best commissioner we've ever seen in the city of Boston, commissioners at.
Commissioner Santiago
Uh, uh to the good good uh, good actually. I wanted to also recognize our chief of human services, our chief Jose Maso, who also come from a family of service members as grandfather served, uh coming up the ranks as a matter of fact at a time where it wasn'tvalent Latino community uh grandfather came up from being a private in the army and made it to a major in the army is also a cheap thing so much for your service as well. Now it is for me to introduce uh our number one advocate here in the city of Boston for our veterans, our mayor mayor Michelle Wu
Talk by Mayor Michelle Wu
Morning, everyone. What an honor to be here with you here after year, but especially in this moment when we are all confronted with what more we can do in the need that we hear in our communities, and the depths of service that this community represents. Uh, thank you so much to Commissioner Santiago and to our entire team in his office.
We really strive to be best in class in Boston in addressing the veterans, military families, service members and all in our city who have a heart of service. And so the work they do every day to make our services proactive and accessible, uh I'm so proud and I'm so thankful for all of the hard work that you put in. Thank you so much to our colleague here in elected office. uh, lieutenant Senator Edwards, who's in immigration in every way.
Thank you so much for taking the time to lead our parade and lead up so many initiatives across the Commonwealth. and city council President Led, Council Meia, Counselor Flynn and all of our council colleagues for the work they do to advance legislation and stand up for the funding and the resources for our veterans and military families. I'm grateful to all of our first responders, military organizations, all the family members, Goldstar families, the active service members and leaders who are joining us up here on the dais and also out in the community. You serve our community in many ways, and that service extends an entire lifetime if we want to recognize and thank you for that.
Our goal in Boston is to make our city a home for everyone, and it is the active work of our veterans and service members and leaders who make that possible in every part of our city so to commander to it and all those that the American legion and all of our various posts and organizations, we thank you for all the work that goes unnoticed day and and day out outside of the major commemorations as well. You understand that service means giving up precious time with those that you love. It means courage and selflessness, and that willingness to risk everything to keep others safe.
Since the founding of this nation, community members from Boston have answered that call. Our residents our very own have always stepped up to defend not just our city, but our nation. not just our homes, but our people, and the values and ideals that we continue to strive forth. One of those values is that we care for our own, especially those who have given so much to care for all of us. and while we're proud of the many ways in which Boston has always been a city that finds every way to celebrate and support our veterans, we know we can always do more.
And that's why we're continue to expand the resources in place so that fossom can be the best possible home for our veterans. This past summer, under the commissioner's leadership, our office of veteran services launched its bridge the gap mini grant program, where nearly 100,000 in funding went to local organization supporting our veterans and military community. This included free and discounted veterans memberships at the Charleston YMCA to helping the heroes Haven Project provide furniture, food and health services to veterans in South Boston and beyond, and will be accepting applications for the second round of the bridge the gapini Grant funding starting next week.
The goal is to provide twice as much funding as we did the first time around. So, if you're part of a veteran serving organization or you know someone who is, please make sure they know about this and have the opportunity to apply or reach out to our veteran search theam so that we can help support and exam the critical work that you're doing. And finally, today I practice sign an order that will adjust the property tax exemption for Boston veterans to help them save more money in the face of inflation and to give that just little bit of extra cushion that is much needed I want to thank Governor Healing and all of our colleagues at the state house, Senator Edwards, all the members of the Boston delegation, and in the Massachusetts executive Office of action services for clearing the way so that Boston and cities and towns across the Commonwealth could make this adjustment through the Ho act. and thank you so much to come for president tougen and Counselor Brian Morrell and all our colleagues for sponsoring the order and then voting it through unanimously.
We all share the priority of making our city more affordable for all of our residents, including and especially our veterans. Thank you for your service. Boston is blessed to be your home, and now I'd like to invite commissioner Santiago to read the proclamation as we raised the flag., as we line up to get ready to raise the services veterans flag,
Commissioner Santiago reading the proclamation
I wanted to echo something from the mayor.
She had mentioned the team at an office of veteran Services. I cannot have done this by myself. I could not be able to do all the great work that we do for our veterans without the team. at the office of veteran Services, and they are all here today to ensure that this parade that recognizes of our and honors our veterans, run in us very impactful and I believe it has been.
So I want to, you know, tell them thank you in the public setting for all of the work that they do for our veterans, day in and day off.
So if you could please join me in a a round of applause for the for the members of the office of veteran Services.
Reading of the proclamation
right at this time I am going to read the proclamation or that orders the raising of the services here in city hall plaza.
City boss and proclamation, whereas President Dwight the Eisenhower signed the first veterans Day proclamation in 1954, calling on our nation to pay appropriate homage to the veterans of all its warriors who have contributed so much to the preservation of this nation, and whereas on November 11, 2024, we recognize a legacy of loyalty and service honoring the unwavering dedication of our veterans.
This reflects the endearing commitment of those who have served in the United States armed forces emphasizing their steadfast loyalty and selfless service to our nation, and whereas the city of Boston is home to over 20,000 veterans who has served our nation in times of both peace and conflict, many faced danger and fought for our way of life, and whereas through their selfless service there these dedicated neighbors who served in our armed forces, have kept our cities in our country strong, and inspired generations have followed, and proven their heroers of time and again, and whereas we recognized an honor with gratitude and respect our neighbors who have served in our own forces and sacrificed so much to protect our freedoms and our way of life. Now, therefore, mayor Michel Wu, mayor of the city of Boston, to hereright proclaim the 11th day of November to be veterans day in the city of Boston on this day and in recognition of veterans, service members, and their families, the mayor has ordered the property management department to raise the United States armed forces flag on the third flag pole here in city of Plaza in place of the city of Boston flag, signed mere Michelle Wu, mayor of Boston, November 9, 2024,,
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