Cornwall-on-Hudson Trustee Lori Beth Paliotta has identified 22 utility poles, on Hudson Street, which could be used for illuminated holiday decorations or Hometown Hero banners, a project which the Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson is collaborating on with the Town of Cornwall to create a unified thoroughfare between the two communities.

An ad hoc committee was recently created and includes Deputy Mayor James Kane, Supervisor Josh Wojehowski, American Legion Post 353 Commander Peter Kurpeawski, and Greater Cornwall Chamber of Commerce President Scott Teresi. They were tasked with identifying 15 individuals to honor with Hometown Hero banners. So far, the committee has agreed the first crop of honorees should be military and public safety servants.

Mayor James Gagliano said the committee will be starting small and those being considered include the three posthumous Medal of Honor recipients, Captain Paul Bucha (a Medal of Honor recipient who died in July), Officer Robert D’Egidio (who died of a heart attack while pursuing a suspect on foot), Ken Kumpel (who lost his life on 9/11), and Thomas Ringlehan (who succumbed to injuries while en route to an incident in West Point). The mayor also suggested Ken Cashman, longtime editor of The Cornwall Local. Although he wasn’t a resident, he’s described as “quintessentially Cornwall”.

Going forward, it will be up to the committee to decide who will be recognized in the future, especially if families are allowed to submit requests in the future.

Trustee Bill Braine made the pitch that those in the arts, education, and historical figures should also be honored like Edward Payson Roe or Harriet J. Terry. Gagliano liked the idea, but questioned where the committee would draw the line. Braine also suggested the honor shouldn’t be bestowed upon anyone living, but the mayor disagreed, adding it would leave out someone like Ray Mellin, who was held in a POW camp during the Korean War.

The Newburgh Rotary Club, which covers the Cornwall area, will be doing the heavy lifting in terms of the design, but the village still must determine how to pay for the banners. In the future, Gagliano suggested, the banners could be funded by the American Legion, family members, the police and fire departments, as well as Walden Savings Bank.

The goal is to have the banners on display by Veterans Day.

The banners will remain until the end of November and additional poles will don illuminated snowflakes. Town and village officials agreed the holiday lights should be secular, but sleighs or candy canes weren’t enough, especially if the idea is to leave them up past December. It was decided to hang snowflakes, which are expected to remain through the winter season.

Which poles will be dedicated to the banners and lights is still being determined, but the two can’t share the same space. Gagliano explained the banner requires inserting rods into two fixtures attached to the poles and wouldn’t allow the placement of lights.