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April 30, 2025 |  | Ready To Serve ★ Proud To Have Served |
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Honoring Vietnam War Heroes |
On Sunday, April 27th, the name of Allan H. Katz, killed in action in Vietnam, was added to the New Jersey Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
Honoring the service and sacrifice of New Jerseyans who served during the Vietnam War is a year-round, ongoing mission for each and every one of us. On Sunday, the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs was proud to join Congresswoman Nellie Pou, public officials, veteran leaders, and our outstanding partners at the New Jersey Vietnam Veterans Memorial Foundation to add the name of Allan H. Katz to our state’s memorial at Holmdel.
A native of Paterson, Private First Class Katz was killed in action on February 26, 1967. He is the 1,565th name inscribed on the Memorial Wall that contains the names of every New Jerseyan who served during the war and made the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of the United States. The wall contains 366 eight-foot-high black granite panels – one panel for each day of the year – plus one day to cover leap years. The names of the fallen are commemorated on the panel of the date that they died.
Since 1991, on May 7th of each year, the State of New Jersey pauses to honor and remember the service and sacrifice of the over 115,000 New Jerseyans who served in the Vietnam War. This day coincides with President Gerald R. Ford’s May 7, 1975 declaration of the war’s conclusion. Please join us this Wednesday, May 7th, as we observe New Jersey Vietnam Veterans’ Remembrance Day at 11:00AM at the memorial.
There is no better place to commemorate this day than at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and Museum. One of DMAVA’s most important responsibilities is the care and maintenance of this hallowed ground. Our team recently completed major work at the memorial that in addition to routine maintenance includes upgrades to the memorial’s electrical service, the conversion of bulbs to LED, the replacement of light fixtures and bollards, and other repairs.
May we always remember. And for those who did not hear these words when they returned all those years ago, from the bottom of my heart, I wish to say, “Welcome home.” |
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| As always, thank you for staying connected to DMAVA.
We invite you to share ideas, events and feedback. Please email our team at outreach@dmava.nj.gov.
Brigadier General Yvonne L. Mays
Adjutant General & Commissioner |
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DMAVA Calendar | DMAVA is sponsoring or will participate in the events below. A DMAVA Veterans Service Officer will be present at many of these events. Please check details to confirm. |
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We add new events to our calendar on a daily basis so please bookmark and check back often. |
| View Full Calendar |
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 | N.J. American Legion donates handicap-accessible van
Veterans working to reintegrate in their communities will have an easier time getting to and from Veteran's Haven North in Glen Gardner, New Jersey, thanks to the donation of a multi-passenger handicap-accessible van from the American Legion Department of New Jersey.
“Donations like these speak volumes of the dedication of our Veterans Service Organizations,” said Brig. Gen. Yvonne L. Mays, Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs. “I speak for our entire team when I offer my deep gratitude to Department Commander Andy Jackson and the American Legion Family. We appreciate these investments in the lives of our Veterans who have challenges in their mobility.”
Veteran's Haven North is a transitional housing facility staffed to ensure that homeless Veterans are treated and cared for in a dignified, compassionate, and professional manner in order to help them reach an optimal level of independence. The Haven aids Veterans in re-acquiring the life skills needed to live in the community while maintaining their self-sufficiency, dignity, and honor.
Veteran's Haven North is funded by the State of New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs and it is supported by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and a wide variety of service organizations, community agencies, Veterans groups and private citizens. |
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 | Response to Wildfires
In coordination with our interagency partners, New Jersey Office of Emergency Management and New Jersey Forest Fire Service, eleven Soldiers along with two UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters from the 1-150th Aviation Regiment, N.J. Army National Guard, and four firefighters along with equipment from the 177th Fighter Wing’s Civil Engineer Squadron, N.J. Air National Guard, have supported ongoing efforts to contain the 15,300-acre Jones Road wildfire in Ocean County, NJ.
“The New Jersey National Guard is proud to support all those working around the clock to contain this fire,” said Brig. Gen. Yvonne L. Mays, The Adjutant General of New Jersey. “Helping our neighbors in need is what we do – always ready, always there.”
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 | Operation Eagle Strike
U.S. Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Nancy VanHorn visited a joint training exercise between the New Jersey National Guard and the Albanian Armed Forces Academy in Rreth Greth, Albania on April 23, 2025.
This is the fourth year of this exercise where future officers of both countries conduct leadership training and share their military experiences.
The New Jersey National Guard and the Albanian Armed Forces share a partnership in the U.S. Department of Defense State Partnership Program dating over 20 years. |
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Annual Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon
The New Jersey Veterans Memorial Home at Vineland hosted their Annual Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon at the Grove at Centerton, Pittsgrove, NJ on April 23, 2025.
The luncheon was held to recognize the individuals and organizations that volunteered more than 9,000 hours of their time toward bettering the lives of residents at the home. View Images |
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 | Annual Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon
The New Jersey Veterans Home at Paramus hosted their annual Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon at The Fiesta in Wood-Ridge, NJ on April 25, 2025.
The luncheon was held to recognize more than 50 individuals and organizations that volunteer their time towards bettering the lives of residents at the home. View Images |
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 | Milo Hannah, Salem County VSO
Milo Hannah, DMAVA Veterans Service Officer (VSO) for Salem County, attended the 5th Annual We Got Your 6 Poker Run & Veterans Resource Fair on April 19, 2025.
If you know anyone in need of assistance regarding Veteran’s benefits, please contact Milo or one of his colleagues by visiting our website at Veterans Service Offices. |
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 | Get Connected to Resources & Services |
The New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs has partnered with Unite Us to connect individuals and families to a wide variety of services and resources.
Unite Us is a coordinated care referral network of health and social service providers. Unite Us can connect our New Jersey military and veteran community to resources to obtain benefits, food assistance, housing, education, transportation, behavioral health services, peer support and more. |
| Learn More / Request Assistance |
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Veteran Homelessness | The mission of Bringing Veterans Home (BVH) is to effectively end veteran homelessness in New Jersey by enhancing existing systems, creating rapid access to housing, and ensuring homelessness becomes rare, brief, and non-recurring.
BVH creates a clear path to stable housing for veterans experiencing homelessness through a coordinated network of services and support. |
| Learn More / Refer a Veteran |
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Bring Your Child to Work Day
The New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs participated in the "Bring Your Child to Work Day" in Lawrenceville, NJ on April 24, 2025. View Images |
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Longest Yarn Exhibition at the NAS Wildwood Aviation MuseumThe Longest Yarn is The Pride of Cape May County, offering visitors a unique blend of art and history. If you are interested in volunteering, please join us in bringing this incredible exhibit to life.
Individuals interested in volunteering should send their name, contact information and availability to volunteerstlycmc@gmail.com.
The Longest Yarn is inspired by the 80th anniversary of D-Day, and was unveiled in Carentan, France, in the Normandy region on June 6, 2024.
The Longest Yarn made its national debut at the Naval Air Station Wildwood (NASW) Aviation Museum and will continue to be displayed from April to Labor Day 2025.
The Longest Yarn is a three-dimensional wool tapestry knitted and crocheted by hundreds of volunteers from around the world. Created with the guidance of historians retained by the project to ensure historical accuracy, the creator has carefully chosen each scene to depict the events of D-Day.
The Longest Yarn will become a national treasure as it travels from the NASW Aviation Museum to the Chapel of Four Chaplains in Philadelphia, then on to the Women's Auxiliary in Washington, DC, at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and to Fort Mills, Kentucky, for the 101st Airborne Division.
Visit the exhibit at the NAS Wildwood Aviation Museum, open daily from 10-4.
Learn More |
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 | Combined Field Training Exercise
Over the April 26th weekend, ROTC cadets from Seton Hall, Rutgers and Princeton conducted their annual Combined Field Training Exercise.
Cadets conducted various platoon-sized lanes to include raids, movement-to-contacts, ambushes and attacks in order to train and practice their leadership skills in preparation for Cadet Summer Training later this year.
Cadets even had the opportunity to fly to Fort Dix in a UH-60 Black Hawk, courtesy of the New Jersey Army National Guard.
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 | LTC Eric Tolska
U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel Eric J. Tolska, New Jersey Army National Guard, is celebrated by family and friends following his final flight as a UH-60 Black Hawk pilot at the Army Aviation Support Facility on Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, NJ on April 27, 2025. View Images
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 | New Jersey Fallen Heroes Memorial |
In Honor of all those from New Jersey who gave their lives in the fight against terrorism during Operation Enduring Freedom & Iraqi Freedom. In humble gratitude, we remember their sacrifice. |
Memorial Inscription"But on the battlefield their feet stood fast, and in an instant at the height of their fortune, they passed away from the scene, not of their fear, but of their glory." ~ Pericles |
| NJ Fallen Heroes Memorial |
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Soldiers of the 2nd NJ Volunteer Infantry in Virginia in May 1863. |
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| May 3, 1861 |
New Jersey’s four regiment militia brigade, enlisted for three months’ service, left Trenton for Washington aboard motorized canal boats down the Delaware River. Some militiamen celebrated by firing handguns randomly in the air, and one careless Jersey City man accidentally shot another soldier. The Jerseymen debarked at Annapolis and boarded trains to Washington -- the first full brigade to reach the capital. |
May 3, 1941 | New Jersey National Guardsmen of the Forty-fourth Division, on active duty at Fort Dix since September 1940, held their “biggest ever” review for Navy Secretary Frank M. Knox, guest of the Seventy-eighth Division Veterans Association, holding a reunion at Fort Dix. |
May 7, 1995 | The New Jersey Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial, situated alongside the Garden State Parkway in Holmdel, was dedicated. The memorial, a circular open-air pavilion, is ringed with black granite panels, each representing a day of the year, engraved with the names of New Jerseyans who died on that day during the war. |
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May 10, 1864 |
The first military draft in New Jersey under the Enrollment Act of 1863 took place in Ocean County. Ultimately, only 951 men drafted in New Jersey in 1864 and 1865 actually served in the army. The rest either paid commutation or provided a substitute. | May 12, 1864 |
Born in England, John P. Beech was a Trenton, NJ resident in 1861 when he enlisted in the 4th New Jersey Infantry. Beech was awarded the Medal of Honor for his conduct on May 12, 1864 at Spotsylvania. He ran forward to assist an artillery battery, most of whose men had been killed or wounded. He voluntarily assisted the remaining artillery men, despite being under heavy fire. Beech died in Trenton in 1926. | May 12, 1864
| Colonel William Penrose’s First New Jersey Brigade, the Second, Third, Fourth and Fifteenth New Jersey regiments and four companies of the Second New Jersey regiment attacked Confederates at the “Bloody Angle” at Spotsylvania, Virginia, suffering heavy casualties.
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 | We Are Hiring!
At the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs we take our work in support of Veterans, Servicemembers and their families very seriously. Whether supporting our Veterans with nursing care, transitional housing, or assisting them in navigating access to their Veteran benefits, the Department provides valuable services and can offer rewarding career opportunities to members of the public.
We also have opportunities in facilities management and program management. In addition, we have job openings for members of our military to serve in AGR and Federal Technician roles.
Subscribe to DMAVA Jobs Bulletin to stay updated on job openings.
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We hope you enjoy receiving our newsletter and find it both educational and engaging. If you have questions about our department, our programs or your benefits, please visit our website at nj.gov/military to get contact information. |
| Contact DMAVA |
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Please email us at outreach@dmava.nj.gov with feedback and comments regarding the newsletter. If you would like to contribute with an item of interest to our subscribers, please email us your proposal.
Visit the DMAVA archives to view previous editions of our newsletter. |
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nj.gov/military NJ Department of Military & Veterans Affairs 101 Eggerts Crossing Road
Lawrenceville, NJ 08648
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Disclaimer: The appearance of any non-DMAVA information or hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement of the products or services on the part of the New Jersey Department of Military & Veterans Affairs. |
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