10 Nov ESSEX COUNTY EXECUTIVE DIVINCENZO HOSTS ANNUAL VETERANS DAY OBSERVANCE AT ESSEX COUNTY VETERANS MEMORIAL PARK Four Essex County Residents Honored for Military Service
Published on November 10, 2026
Newark, NJ – On Monday, November 9th, Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. hosted the Annual Essex County Veterans Day Observance in Essex County Veterans Memorial Park in Newark. During the ceremony, the County Executive presented Essex County Community Star Awards to Orange resident Norris Holmes, an Air Force veteran who served during the Korean War; Nutley Mayor John V. Kelly, III, an Army veteran and Army National Guard member who has been deployed to the Middle East, Iraq and Puerto Rico; and Newark resident Saleem Muhammad (aka William Davidson), an Army veteran who served during the Vietnam War. He also recognized Newark resident Frederick Dammont, a 104-year-old veteran who served with the Allied Forces during World War II.
“Throughout our country’s history, brave men and women have put their lives on hold to serve in the U.S. Armed Forces at home and abroad. Our Essex County Veterans Memorial Park was created to provide our veterans with a place to find serenity and comfort and provide a constant reminder to the public about their contributions and sacrifices,” DiVincenzo said. “We are proud to stand with our veterans at this important occasion, give them our respect and thank them for representing our country with valor and bravery,” he added.
This year, DiVincenzo partnered with Positive Community magazine to honor local veterans and commemorate the 250th anniversary of the United States’ founding. During the program, Positive Community Publisher Adrian Counsel presented each of the honorees, as well as all veterans in attendance, with an Crispus Attucks Medal of Freedom. Attucks was the first person killed during the Boston Massacre in 1770 and is regarded as the first person killed during the American Revolution.
Norris Holmes is a resident of Orange who will turn 94 years old on December 16th. Born in Georgia, his family moved to Newark in 1948 and he joined the Air Force in 1952, where he was a member of the Air Police and worked in security. He had the rank of Airman 3, fought in the Korean War and was stationed in Northern Africa and at a base in Topeka, Kansas. Mr. Holmes thanked the County Executive for the honor.
John Kelly comes from a family dedicated to public service. He has continued that tradition by serving his hometown of Nutley as Mayor and his country as a member of the Army and Army National Guard. He has been deployed to the Middle East and to Puerto Rico on a humanitarian mission and most recently interrupted his mayoral duties for 6 months while he was in Iraq as a JAG officer.
“A veteran doesn’t make the sacrifice alone. I want to thank my wife, my parents and family, and the community. When someone goes away, it’s a team effort,” Kelly said.
Saleem Muhammad is a resident of Newark who served in the U.S. Army and is a Vietnam Veteran. Mr. Muhammad continues his service today by helping disabled veterans receive VA treatment and disability pensions for which they qualify. He also helped organize Charlie Chapter of LZ Hope during the pandemic. When the group could not meet because of COVID, Mr. Muhammad believed it was important for the veterans to continue to have a venue to gather on a weekly basis. He also mentors young boys to stay out of trouble through his barbershop ministry.
“Thank you to everyone who made this possible. When we came home from Vietnam, we were not treated so well, so when you see a vet, please give them your thanks,” Muhammad said.
Frederick Dammont is a resident of Newark and is 104 years old. During World War II, he served in the Polish Army and fought alongside American troops with the Allied Forces.
Also speaking during the program were Senate Majority Leader and Deputy Chief of Staff Teresa Ruiz, Commissioners Brenda Gill and Len Luciano, Register Juan Rivera, Sheriff Amir Jones, Army veteran and Co-Chair of the Essex County Veterans Advisory Board Lucy DelGaudio and Air Force veterans Vincent Bryant and Bill Squires, Rev. Dennis Hughes presented the invocation. Aikeysha Dumas, a student at Essex County Donald Payne School of Technology, sang the National Anthem. The Essex County Sheriff’s Honor Guard presented the colors at the beginning of the ceremony. Bagpiper Joe McGonigal performed the “Armed Forces Medley.”
Essex County Veterans Memorial Park became the first new Essex County park developed in Newark in 80 years when it opened in September 2009. It was created on the site of an antiquated parking garage that opened in the 1960s and had become an community eyesore. The 2.7-acre park has about 400 trees, shrubs and perennials, two small meadows, the Armed Forces Memorial, walking paths and decorative metal archways at the entrances. The Armed Forces Memorial includes a circular water fountain surrounded by 10 flagpoles and a short granite wall. The flags of the seven branches of the military – Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Army National Guard and Air Force National Guard – fly from 25-foot poles while the New Jersey State flag and Essex County flag fly from 30-foot poles and the American flag flies from a 35-foot pole at the center of the display. At the base of each flag pole on the granite wall is the official agency or government seal.
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