More Than 100 Attend Danielsen’s Annual Veterans’ Day Breakfast

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In the largest such gathering to date, more than 100 military veterans gathered at the Stage House restaurant Nov. 8 for state Assemblyman Joe Danielsen’s annual Veterans’ Day breakfast.

This is the fifth year that Danielsen, himself a U.S. Army veteran, has held the event. All of the food is donated by the Stage House.

In addition to there being more veterans than ever before at the breakfast, this one was notable for having a large number of women veterans.

In his remarks to the veterans, Danielsen noted how the spouses and families of veterans also serve, in their own way.

Using his mother as an example, Danielsen said she saw members of her immediate family, her husband and her sons, grandsons and grand-daughters off to begin their military careers.

“My mother shined more boots and sewed more patches and cleaned more laundry than any veteran I know, but she gave of the heart,” he said. “So I also, always, take a moment to think of my mom and her service.”

“If you serve a veteran, you serve this country,” he said. “So to the men and women and wives and husbands who served and supported veterans, God bless you, too. You are of great service to our country.”

Danielsen later said that if being a veteran is the “highest honor” as a citizen is to be a veteran, then the “second-highest honor to have is supporting and serving a veteran, and this is what this breakfast does.”

“It’s a very personal, intimate recognition of not only veterans, but the mothers and family and friends of veterans who support them even after they’re done serving our country.”

Somerset County Freeholder Shanel Robinson, a township resident and Air Force veteran, noted that like Danielsen, she, too, came from a long line of military veterans, including her grandfather, who served in World War II and Korea.

“I understand and know so well of what each and every one of you has gone through and is going through and have family members who have supported you and stood by you in wartime and peacetime,” she said. “But here we are today to celebrate what we have done and accomplished as veterans.”

During the breakfast, Danielsen presented an Assembly commendation to the Stage House’s Donald “Junior” Erickson for his continued support of the event.

“From the bottom of my heart, I represent a grateful community, we would like to thank you,” he told Erickson.

Erickson said he supports the event because he has military people in his family, and he believes that businesses should give back to their communities.

“My whole family is filled with people who have given service,” he said. “My mother was an auxiliary member, my grandfather is a World War II veteran who’s still alive today, he’s 96. It’s part of what we do.”

“It’s really important when you’re a business in a community that you do give back, when you’re in a position to give back, you should give,” he said. “It’s that simple.”

Here are a few scenes from the morning:

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