The Berlin
Cit itiz ize en Berlin’s Only Hometown Newspaper
Volume 14, Number 21
Thursday, May 27, 2010
1785-2010
Berlin at 225 — a celebration of community life By Olivia L .Lawrence The Berlin Citizen Today The Citizen launches a special 225th ann iv e r s a r y year series to highlight the life and times of Berlin as the town celebrates this milestone during May— and throughout the year. With help from local historians at the Berlin-Peck
Memorial Library and the Berlin Historical Society, The Citizen brings readers photos from days gone by as well as an extensive timeline highlighting events that shaped this community. The series will continue with several installments over the course of the summer. Under the guidance of Assistant Director Cathy Nelson — a historian herself — the library put together several presentations on the
According to local historians, this undated photo shows a parade float, for the American Bridge Co. of East Berlin, that was likely part of a Memorial Day See Berlin, page 5 celebration.
Rick Smilnak poses next to machine guns mounted on the tail of a plane. The photo was taken in the late 1960s when Smilnak was in Guam serving in the Air Force during the Vietnam war.
Memorial Day 2010
Vietnam era vets: life goes on, but memories stay close By Olivia L. Lawrence and Maura Gaffney The Berlin Citizen Some served “in country,” others were part of the war effort on other fronts, but scores of veterans from Berlin were part of the tumultuous Vietnam era. Three young Berlin men were killed in that war and many others suffered injuries, physical and otherwise. Most who returned have gotten on with their lives, but there is no doubt the war changed individuals
and the country. Three local veterans spoke with The Citizen about their Vietnam era experiences; where they picked up when they came back to Berlin and how they view the uneasy reconciliation that has evolved as people re-evaluate what happened to the country during this controversial period. Coming home Cleveland P. Huggins III, 63, served in the Army in Vietnam from September 1972 to February 1973. He was there when the cease fire
was called. He served a total of 27 years in the Army (both active and reserve time combined), was a captain in Vietnam, and eventually retired as a colonel. Huggins said “There are a couple of things that irk me about being a Vietnam veteran…It took the public 30 years to realize that we weren’t bad guys. “I was welcomed home in 1991. I was welcoming home the returning Desert Storm guys up at the Air Force base
See Vietnam, page 21