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Middle Island, NY  -- More than 700 honorees and their families, dignitaries, civic leaders, veterans, firefighters, school children and school officials came out to "Honor Every Hometown Hero" at the Bartlett Pond Park monument dedication to Longwood School District's own who have served or are serving in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Gulf Wars - 238 in all and counting. Veterans of earlier wars, including WWII, welcomed the latest honorees, placing a "Longwood Veteran Medal" around their necks one at a time, and distributing a Longwood Veteran hat and a volume of their published biographies, written by Longwood Junior High School students. Firefighters laid wreaths at foot of each of the park's first six monuments, dedicated to the community's patriots dating back to the Revolutionary War. General Anthony Kropp, US Army Retired, reminded the participants of the individual sacrifices of the honorees.  “These men and women clearly represent all that is good about America.” Congressman Tim Bishop (D 1st NY) presented a proclamation of a page written into the Congressional Record, recognizing the work of Longwood School District’s students on this project. Virginia Wiener, Iraqi War widow of Navy Corpsman Jeffrey Wiener, and their daughters Mikayla and Theadora, joined Virginia Eagle, widow of Pearl Harbor Survivor James Eagle, in unveiling the new monument and laying the wreath and flag that flew in over a base in Iraq.  It was an interview of James Eagle by 7th-grade students that began a project that would result in a school/community/business partnership to permanently honor every patriot from the community. That was more than a decade ago. Since that time, hundreds of seventh graders have interviewed servicemen and women, and researched the lives of veterans of earlier wars.