On this Veterans Day, Brother Martin High School’s NJROTC joined with the family of Jacques J. Fontan, Class of 1986, to reflect on the ultimate sacrifice of our men and women who lost their lives in the service of their country.
Following morning Mass in the James B. Branton Chapel, a wreath was placed on the memorial plaque by his family. The plaque was donated to Brother Martin by the Fontan Family and not only honors Chief Petty Officer Fontan but all of those Crusaders who lost their lives in the service of their country.
Veterans Day, originally known as Armistice Day, was approved by an Act on May 13, 1938. It established the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday—a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated primarily as a day set aside to honor veterans of World War I, but in 1954, after World War II had required the greatest mobilization of soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen in the Nation’s history; after American forces had fought aggression in Korea, the 83rd Congress, at the urging of the veterans service organizations, amended the Act of 1938 by striking out the word “Armistice” and inserting in its place the word “Veterans.” With the approval of this legislation (Public Law 380) on June 1, 1954, November 11th became a day to honor American veterans of all wars. (Text taken from the web site of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs)
Wording on the memorial plaque located at the base of the flag pole:
Brother Martin High School
Honoring Former Students Who Lost Their Lives While Serving Our Country
In the Armed Forces of the United States,
Their Supreme Sacrifice for Our Freedom Shall Never Be Forgotten.
Dedicated In Memory of Chief Petty Officer Jacques J. Fontan,
Navy Seal and Brother Martin Class of 1986
Killed In Action, Afghanistan 28 June 2005
