Amherst honors veterans, annual paintings unveiled

AMHERST — Hundreds gathered in downtown Amherst on Tuesday to honor the city, state and country's veterans. The annual Veterans Day ceremony, now in its 15th year on Park Avenue, saw attendees brave brisk winds to see the 11 new paintings unveiled by the city's mural committee at Patriots Park. Patriots Park, in the heart of Amherst, features a revolving gallery of paintings commemorating veterans and their families. It was dedicated on Veterans Day in 2021 and each year since has seen 11 new paintings by local artists unveiled. This year's paintings included a memorial piece for Gary Yinling, commissioned by the Lunch Bunch and created by artist Mike Sekletar. Mike Sekletar and his father, Jon, were part of the driving force behind Patriots Park, with Mike's mural of the flag-raising at Iwo Jima during World War II. Yinling, 73, died in 2023. He was born and raised in Lorain, graduated from Admiral King High School in 1967 and enlisted in the U.S. Air Force during the Vietnam War. He was a member of the Lunch Bunch, a group of local veterans who visit area restaurants. The group also donated a bench to the park in memory of one of its founding members, Roger Brownson. Other pieces honored six-time Blue Star mother Christine Conry and more recent veteran Sgt. Kenneth Sklenicka Jr. Conry saw six of her 12 children serve and survive World War II. That piece was commissioned by the Martin Conry Family — one of Christine's sons — and painted by Mike Sekletar. Sklenicka served in the Navy from 2005 to 2014, including deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. His portrait was commissioned by Bob and Flavia Donofrio and painted by local artist Bob Cutlip. The Parma resident stood by, admiring his portrait briefly on Tuesday morning during the ceremony before slipping back into the crowd. This year's guest speaker was Erin Rader, who, alongside veteran and monument builder Ken Noon, wrote the book "3095 Plus: Ohio's Fallen — the Battle for a Veterans' Memorial." The nonfiction work chronicles the story of a group of veterans who created a memorial in Clinton over 20 years. The memorial has the longest freestanding granite memorial wall in the country, the names of fallen soldiers in the Vietnam War and other conflicts, she said. "On this day, we honor our fallen, along with those who served and those still serving. We honor their service, we recognize their sacrifices," she said. "We reflect on their experiences and on our freedoms that they have and continue to protect." While there are memorials to veterans across the country, there is nothing like Patriots Park, Rader said. The Amherst Browns Backers donated $1,500 to the park's mural association. Longtime officiant Lou Maglio also announced plans to step down after this year, and introduced his replacement: fellow Fox 8 reporter Rex Smith. Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.