Hempstead honors 8 Tuskegee Airmen

Eddie Monroe stood before about 200 people in the Hempstead Town Hall pavilion Tuesday, but his thoughts were back in Vietnam, South Korea and Thailand.

Monroe, 77, of Freeport, and seven other former Tuskegee Airmen accepted the town's 2011 Rosa Parks Award for their service in World War II and, for some like Monroe, in subsequent wars. The award "brings back all the memories," Monroe said. "To have community support is the best thing."

The Tuskegee Airmen were members of the 332nd Fighter Group in World War II, the only U.S. fighter group made up entirely of black men, a large number of whom came from the New York area. Their name came from their training site near the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama.

"Remarkably, these brave individuals fought for the freedom of every citizen of this nation, even those who attempted to limit the rights of African-Americans," Supervisor Kate Murray said during the town's African-American History Month celebration.

The award "gives us the accolades and respect we deserve," said Robert Olden, 79, of Roosevelt, who became deputy county executive and the first black chairman of the board of trustees of Nassau Community College. Being a Tuskegee airman "was quite an experience because it wasn't too many of us," he said.

Other award recipients were Jason Arrington, Roscoe Brown Jr., William Johnson, Victor Terrelonge and William Wheeler, all residents of Hempstead, and Julius T. Freeman of Queens.

"I am very proud that we are recognizing our history, and are educating everyone in the town about our history," said Councilwoman Dorothy Goosby, the first African-American woman to serve on the town council. Hempstead also honored Bishop Frank O. White, leader of the 1,500-congregant Zion Cathedral Church of God in Christ in Freeport.

Five Hempstead employees were honored for 25 years of service: Terry Edwards, Dana Frazier, Lois Gittens, Edward Holley Jr. and Anthony Thomas.