Memorial Day Special – The Spirit of ’45 Day – 70 Years Since the end of WWII, Hear Vets Share What Peace Means to Them.
Times Square Event
Program Description
• The Spirit of ’45 Day event will be held on 42nd-43rd Broadway Plaza in Times
Square to officially kick off the countdown to the events and activities that
will be taking place next year to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of
World War II on August 14, 1945.
• The event will feature live ‘40’s music* and commentary by WWII era seniors,
representatives of veterans and service organizations, and youth leadership
groups, and conclude with a wreath ceremony and a performance of “Taps.”
• The event will require a 50 chairs for speakers and invited guests, a podium,
and a 6 ft Seward Johnson sculpture depicting the famous “Times Square
Kiss” (a 26 ft version is was brought into Times Square on the 65th
anniversary of the end of WWII in 2010.
• The event will feature an intergenerational group of veterans from WWII to
the present day, and those who have supported them on the Home Front.
These will include Pat Little, the National Commander of the Military Order
of the Purple Heart, Harriett Thompson, a 91 year old cancer survivor, who
has achieved national attention as a marathon champion, and Dr. Bruce
Heilman, 88, a WWII Marine veteran who has served as Chancellor of the
University of Richmond for the past 30 years and recently drove his
motorcycle from Virginia to Alaska.
• Walgreens will show a video mosaic of the famous Kiss photograph made up
of hundreds of wedding photos provided by WWII era couples that will be
screened throughout the day, “congratulating the Greatest Generation on the
anniversary of their Greatest Day.”
• Similar media events will be taking place at the giant Seward Johnson statues
depicting the Times Square Kiss in Sarasota, Fl, and San Diego, Ca, and at the
smaller life sized statues that are at the Queen Mary in Long Beach, CA, The
Landing in Branson, MO, and the USS Missouri in Pearl Harbor, HI.
• The press and the public are invited to attend the event.
