One seat will now always be empty at the Times Union Center no matter how many tickets are sold.
A Rolling Thunder POW/MIA Chair of Honor on Wednesday, May 28, was formally installed at the Albany entertainment venue. It serves as a permanent memorial to missing military members. The local Rolling Thunder chapter and Tri-County Council of Vietnam Era Veterans sponsored the installation of the chair, which features the names of four area missing soldiers whose families are still waiting to come home: Col. Christos Bogiages Jr., Col. Charles Burkart Jr., Col. Richard Kibbey and Lance Cpl. Ashton Loney.
“Memorial Day is day of remembrance, and that’s what this chair symbolizes. That’s what this chair is all about,” said
Ronald Lewis, president of Rolling Thunder’s New York Chapter 5. “We use the term ‘never forget,’ and this right here is going to be just a little nudge, just a little reminder to not forget.”
Lewis said the chair urges “full accountability” for bringing home the remains of ser vice members.
“There are remains coming back, but if you do the math — very slow.” Lewis said. “This is another reminder to help the good work that the government is doing … and to step it up a notch a little bit to get these guys home so we are here to notice they are back.”
Albany County Executive Dan McCoy said the chair “means a lot” to the more than 91,000 missing soldiers and their families.
“Just the news two weeks ago, they found a marine and a soldier’s body that are coming home from the Korean War,” McCoy said. “All this time later, and they are still discovering our soldiers who went out there and defended this country who were not able to come in.”
McCoy said the chair has brought back many memories for him. He served in Iraq from 2005 to 2006 and is a member of the New York National Guard.
“I don’t want to get choked up,” he said. “This is just a tough one for me.”
Those who sign up for the military, he said, don’t do it for “pats on the back” or “the medals,” but because they believe in the nation.
“These men and women gave the ultimate sacrifice … and loved ones out there still wondering where they are,” he said.
Rolling Thunder NY Chapter 5 Vice President Tom Griswold dedicated the chair to Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who insurgents captured nearly five years ago in Afghanistan. Bergdahl made national headlines three days after the chair’s unveiling when he was released to American Special Operations troops in exchange for five Taliban detainees held at Guantánamo Bay.
“These men and women that go overseas that don’t ever come home, it is not acceptable,” Griswold said. “The only message I can give everybody is never forget.”
The honorary chairs have been installed in stadiums and venues across the country, including Fenway Park in Boston and Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts. A chair is scheduled to be installed at Yankee Stadium in New York City.
McCoy said the chair would serve as a sober reminder of those who lost their lives defending the country’s freedom.
“We want them to leave with the memory of whatever event they’re at, but we also want them to look at this chair and say, ‘I am enjoying this event … because someone made that sacrifice for me to enjoy it,’” McCoy said. “We don’t want to damper the mood of the event, but we want people to remember.”