World War II veteran gets unhappy surpriseBy Prentiss Findlay (Contact)
The Post and Courier
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Mic Smith World War II veteran George Cercopely poses in front of his wartime pictures and plaques from his service in the Navy. Previous StoryMuseum salutes U.S. veterans; Four-day celebration features hardware of war, pays tribute to those who served in military, published 11/09/08 MOUNT PLEASANT — George Cercopely couldn't believe his ears: Tickets were $15 for Veterans Day ceremonies at Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum. He double-checked just to make sure he understood correctly. "Veterans, too?" he asked. "Everybody," a worker said. At that, Cercopely and Clara, his wife of more than 50 years, had heard enough. Spending $30 for admission for both of them was just too much. "I can't afford that kind of honor," he said. But on the way out, he was in for another surprise. No refund on the $3 parking fee. His reaction? "Shock," he said. Cercopely, 82, should have been admitted to the Patriots Point museum for free, said Charlie Hall Jr., media and public relations manager. "That's exactly what we thought about after the fact. We kind of dropped the ball on that one," Hall said. He said that he was "almost positive there will be no charge" for veterans at next year's Veterans Day program. Three months ago, Patriots Point began charging $3 for parking to raise funds for ship maintenance, which is a constant task. The fleet includes the aircraft carrier Yorktown, the submarine Clamagore, the destroyer Laffey and the Coast Guard cutter Ingham. The museum is "behind millions of dollars" on vessel maintenance and restoration. All of the parking fees go to ship upkeep. So far, $80,000 has been raised for that purpose, Hall said. Cercopely noticed some other things that troubled him on Veterans Day. American flags marking the way to the Yorktown were absent. And the parking lot wasn't close to being full. What bothered him most was the $15 admission for a veteran. "I never knew you had to have a ticket," he said. Earlier this year, Patriots Point reported a 7 percent increase in ticket sales, which officials attribute to the nationally publicized $1.5 million renovation of the Medal of Honor Museum on the Yorktown. About 250,000 people visited the York town last year. Patriots Point has a $7 million annual budget, about half of which comes from ticket and gift shop sales. It also gets lease revenue comprising about 20 percent of its budget from the golf course, hotel and marina, the College of Charleston athletic fields and undeveloped property. Cercopely volunteered for the Navy at age 17, and served two years aboard a 185-foot patrol boat fighting the enemy and dodging typhoons. He was in the middle of the Pacific Ocean when word came that the war had ended. Cercopely returned home to North Charleston, moved in with his parents near the entrance of the Charleston Naval Shipyard, and went to work as a mechanic at the shipyard with thousands of others. These days, he has health problems and trouble seeing at night so he and Clara stick to daytime traveling close to their Bees Ferry Road home. It was a big trip for them to drive from West Ashley to Mount Pleasant. But they made the most of their Veterans Day journey by visiting VFW Post 10805 on Camp Road and American Legion Post 147 on Folly Road after deciding against tickets for Patriots Point. |
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This article has 26 comment(s)
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Posted by My_Master on November 15, 2008 at 5:37 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Mr.Cercopely, Thank you for serving our country. I find it very disturbing that you and your wife weren't allowed to participate in the Veterans Day ceremonies at Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum. free of charge. I would gladly have paid the costs for you had I known. It's the least anyone could do for you and ALL VETERANS of this country. Patriots Point/Yorktown ought to be ashamed of themselves. Charging veterans for this on veterans day,(or any other day as far as I'm concerned) is like telling someone you bought them a new car for their birthday. All they have to do is pay you the $25,000 for the cost of the car plus tax, tags, and title and it's all theirs. Happy Birthday. It makes no sense.
It really pisses me off the more I think about it too. All the free handouts in this country that are given to illegal immigrants, felons, and just plain lazy people who don't want to work, and for just one day a year we can't afford to show our appreciation to soldiers and veterans who put their lives on the line for this country? Makes me sick!!!!
THANK YOU TO ALL VETERANS WHO UNSELFISHLY SERVED OUR COUNTRY. GOD BLESS EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU. YOU ARE THE BEST IN THE WORLD!!!!!
Posted by locoloky on November 15, 2008 at 6:30 a.m. (Suggest removal)
who told him he could not get a refund on parking ? i cant imagine telling a vet in veterans day he would not receive a refund. where is the common sense? vets should get a free pass for life to any event held on the yorktown. thank you to all vets . i know sometimes it seems people do not care but there are some who do.
Posted by oldglory on November 15, 2008 at 7:34 a.m. (Suggest removal)
M_M and loco, I'm with you. What an awful thing to treat our veterans this way.
I guess we can thank the new way of financial managing that businesses all use today. There is no honor, only profit. Sort of like the way all Americans are paying for the CEOs using those golden parachutes. Shame, shame on these profit mongers!
Mr.& Mrs. Cercopely, please understand that most of us honor you both--you, sir, for serving, and you, ma'am, for waiting those years without him by holding the home front. My father was gone for three years, and it was a lot to give up for a little girl. Now that I'm old it still brings tears to my eyes knowing what my father endured and what my mother and I did without.
Posted by Neponset on November 15, 2008 at 7:47 a.m. (Suggest removal)
It is unfortunate that the officials did not anticipate this and make accommodations for the vets - guess they were so busy trying to scrap together money to keep this aging fleet afloat/ water tight. Judging from what I saw on my only visit, these ships are in pretty bad shape. For example the Clamagore has rust holes in the outer hull, who knows when the pressure hull will rust thru and flood the boat. I suspect that all of these ships are slowly rusting away, especially at their water lines.
Posted by theronce on November 15, 2008 at 7:53 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Yes, quite a mistake...you might even say "dereliction of duty". It's incredible that no one thought of this prior to the event, but I expect this to be fixed in the future.
Posted by NativeSon on November 15, 2008 at 8:45 a.m. (Suggest removal)
It is disgusting to me that Veterans have to pay for any public event with military history as its primary focus at any time or on any day.
Patriots Point would not be there had it not been for Veterans. Veterans should always be admitted and parked at no charge, ever!
Posted by yird on November 15, 2008 at 8:49 a.m. (Suggest removal)
This is typical of governments and people in general.
During times of war (declared) when the military is the bulwark against foreign attack as in WWII, it's members are treated with respect bordering on reverence.
With peace comes complacency, followed by revulsion at anything that smacks of violence, like actually killing an enemy combatant, then military members are treated like pariah.
Sick!
Posted by Neponset on November 15, 2008 at 9:13 a.m. (Suggest removal)
yird
There is a poem by Rudyard Kipling on this subject titled “Tommy”, which is what the British call their solders, just we might use Joe. The work is too long, so I didn’t include it here, but it is worth looking up and reading.
Posted by Brant on November 15, 2008 at 9:40 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I guess that takes Patriot's Point off of my list of things to visit the next time I come to Charleston.
Posted by CedarPosts on November 15, 2008 at 11:23 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Neponset Good Call on the Tommy Poem - here are the verses http://faxmentis.org/html/kipling.html
And Wiki explaination: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Atkin...
And my own tribute to men who have served our country like Mr. Cercopely:
http://cedarposts.blogspot.com/2008/11/u...
Posted by Tulane75 on November 15, 2008 at 12:48 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I generally agree with the posts above, but this is nothing when compared to the humiliation that some veterans suffered.
Imagine, defending your country and coming home to find out that you still couldn't eat at the lunch counter at Woolworth's or that you still had to sit in the caged in, police guarded area at College Park baseball games. I saw the ballpark with my own eyes!
Posted by JohnS on November 15, 2008 at 12:51 p.m. (Suggest removal)
El cheapo what's $15.00 to support a good cause? That's not a large sum. Who is suppose to pay for the ships upkeep Obama?
Posted by DawnM on November 15, 2008 at 12:55 p.m. (Suggest removal)
That is horrible. They should have gotten in free for sure! Tulane, why weren't the veterans allowed to sit at the lunch counter?
Posted by UberBlitzkrieg on November 15, 2008 at 1:19 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Probably because they were black or other ethnicities.
Posted by JustJennings on November 15, 2008 at 2:24 p.m. (Suggest removal)
JohnS,
$15 may not be much to you or me, but it can be a lot to someone on a limited income such as a senior citizen. If he and his wife went, that wouls be $30 - as much as some people in this country spend on food for a week! I am glad you are doing well enough to think that $15 is nothing, but many people in this country are not!
Posted by johnwahl on November 15, 2008 at 3:02 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Patriots Point is not the same place it used to be. A reent reunion for USS Corporal posted terrible reviews of Patriots Point and the condition of Clamagore. I visited on Veterans Day myself as a former crewmember of Clamagore and was shocked at the $3.00 parking fee. The attendant apologized but did not hesitate to take the money.
Posted by CedarPosts on November 15, 2008 at 4:14 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The whole place has been mismanaged for years. Only by the grace of God has the Yorktown managed to stay afloat.
So $15.00 that our veterans would have to cough up wouldn't put a drop in the bucket.
But let's face it the Intrepid has 750,000 guests per year Active and Retired Military are free but they too charge vets $15.50.
Posted by counterpoint on November 15, 2008 at 4:57 p.m. (Suggest removal)
+1 for paying for this guy AND his wife, if I had been there. And seriously, the Rudyard Kipling poem is worth checking out: http://faxmentis.org/html/kipling.html
And Mr. Hall, Jr., while I understand that you said this as a PR person, the fact that you "'almost positive there will be no charge' for veterans at next year's Veterans Day program" is enough to make me NOT bring family and friends to visit you.
This isn't even a question. You don't charge someone to honor them. Am I wrong?
Posted by DawnM on November 15, 2008 at 5:33 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I still can't believe it lol, charging a veteran for their own memorial
Posted by 803scdantes on November 15, 2008 at 6:01 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Wow...that's ridiculous Patriots Point.
Posted by Backlash on November 15, 2008 at 6:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Shame is in short supply when it comes to treating veterans with any amount of dignity,.. $15 bucks???.......
Obama's Redistribution philosophy:
Today on my way to lunch I passed a homeless guy with a sign that read 'Vote Obama, I need the money.' I laughed.
Once in the restaurant my server had on an 'Obama 08' tie, and again I laughed.
When the bill came I decided not to tip the server, and I explained to him that I was exploring the Obama redistribution of wealth concept.
He stood there in disbelief when I told him that I was going to redistribute his tip to the homeless guy outside. Boy, was he pissed.
I went outside, gave the homeless guy the $10, and told him to thank the server inside.
The homeless guy was grateful.
At the end of my rather unscientific redistribution experiment, I realized the homeless guy was grateful for the money he did not earn but the waiter was pretty angry that I gave away the money he did earn.
I guess redistribution of wealth is an easier thing to swallow in concept than in practical application.
Posted by mackjr on November 15, 2008 at 7:19 p.m. (Suggest removal)
You've got to bekidding me. This was Veterans Day and Mr. Cercopely should have been admitted FREE of charge. Because of his service to this country we live in FREEDOM today. As a USAF/Desert Storm Veteran, I have taken my children to visit the USS Yorktown and I just can't beleive this could happen on Veterans Day. Let's end this silly issue by admitting Veterans Free on their special day:)
Posted by yird on November 15, 2008 at 8:03 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Neponset; Like Neponset MA?
I read it years ago but forgot all about it. Age does that.
Posted by Neponset on November 15, 2008 at 8:18 p.m. (Suggest removal)
yird
The river in Mass
Posted by chucktonian on November 16, 2008 at 12:51 a.m. (Suggest removal)
None of the last several generations can even fathom what Mr. Cercopely accomplished, the sacrifices he made, the things his generation did without.
I wish I could find him and refund the parking money myself. They should be paying him to show up at events like this...so people can be inspired and hear his story.
If I were running the show, not only would Vets be free, but they would be part of a ceremony where they would be recognized. George and Clara would be VIPs.
Come on in old timer....and give us a clinic on honor, courage and valor.
Posted by WSM on November 23, 2008 at 10:19 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Chucktonian- "None of the last several generations can even fathom what Mr. Cercopely accomplished, the sacrifices he made, the things his generation did without."
I am afraid you are right. The past two generations don't have a clue, and especially the Baby Boomers see military service as some kind of odd "political statement."
Veteran's Day events usually have free admission and such to former service members in most places. Yet, the more "open minded" cities like Charleston, Atlanta, Los Angeles, etc., have a majority portion of their population who haven't heard a shot fired in anger.
That is, if you don't count the gangbangers running wild.
In fact, I firmly believe that we will lose this current war simply because the American public hasn't a clue as to what reality in armed conflict is. If it isn't over by Dancing With the Stars, or someone actually gets hurt, we're losing. We will defeat our enemies on the battlefield, as I have personally seen what the 18 year old American Infantry private can do. Unfortunately, the fat, dumb, and happy back at home will lose it because of their ignorance and gullibility.