U.S. Coast Guard training recruits from Cape May will have a traditional Thanksgiving dinner at the American Legion Post 524 in Ocean City. (Courtesy of American Legion Post 524)
For the second consecutive year, Ocean City’s Sons of the American Legion Squadron 524 will offer a traditional Thanksgiving dinner to 50 U.S. Coast Guard recruits stationed at Cape May’s Coast Guard Training Station.
“Cape May County is a proud Coast Guard community,” Sons of the American Legion Commander Mike Byerly said. “Many of us spend a good deal of time on the water, and it is always reassuring to know that if things go sideways, the Coast Guard has our backs.”
At 9 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning, a charter bus will pick up the recruits at the Cape May Coast Guard Training Station and transport them to the Ocean City Welcome Center. They will be greeted by a police and fire company brigade.
The recruits will then be formally escorted to the American Legion’s Morvay-Miley-Cruice Post 524 at 46th Street and West Avenue for a daylong celebration.
Following coffee and breakfast snacks, a full array of activities will be offered, including games of pinball, pool, shuffleboard, darts and corn hole.
The recruits will enjoy a Thanksgiving dinner of turkey, tenderloin, pulled pork and all the traditional side dish fixings. The main dishes are being prepared by Dave Newman, owner and executive chef at Ocean City’s Blitz’s Market and Deli.
Volunteers from Post 524’s Veterans, Auxiliary and Sons family will make the recruits feel at home.
“I can’t think of a more fitting way to celebrate Thanksgiving than to demonstrably express our gratitude to these young men and women who have chosen to serve our country and our community,” Byerly said. “Hopefully the festivities will ease the burden of being separated from their families and serve as a reminder that their fellow Americans appreciate their sacrifices and service.”
The Coast Guard Training Center at Cape May is the birthplace of the U.S. Coast Guard Enlisted Corps, where all nationwide recruit training functions were consolidated in 1982. Annually, 4,600 new recruits begin their careers with an eight-week training program at the center.
The American Legion Squadron 524 Thanksgiving dinner is aided by the American Red Cross’s New Jersey Region and its Operation Fireside. This program puts recruits and Thanksgiving dinner sponsors in direct contact.
For more information about the Red Cross Operation Fireside, call (609) 562-3483 or email [email protected].
To learn more about activities sponsored by Ocean City’s Morvay-Miley-Cruise American Legion Post 524, call (609) 304-3088 or email www.legion524ocni.com.
