Hero Banners Coming to Schoharie

By Joshua Walther

SCHOHARIE - The next municipality to follow in the trend of honoring military heroes with banners, Schoharie will soon be adorned with their very own collection in recognition of local servicemen and women.

The initiative was first unveiled by Michelle Borst at the Veteran’s Day ceremony, and she showed up at the latest Village Board meeting to give more information.

Dubbed the Schoharie Hometown Hero Banners, Mrs. Borst will make applications publicly available for anyone who wants to recognize or honor any active duty, veteran, or deceased family member that called Schoharie home.

For a fee of $130 and a photo, she will order the family their very own banner, which will be hung on light poles in the Village along Route 30.

Mrs. Borst also noted that although the price is steep for now, her team is constantly on the lookout for donations or sponsors that will help offset the fee in the future.

She also heavily encouraged anyone applying to provide a digital copy of the photo, as she cannot guarantee the safety of an antique picture in the mail.

Unlike other towns that take down their banners seasonally, Schoharie plans to keep their collection up year-round. After three years or if the banner sustains wear and tear damage, it will be retired and given to the family, who can decide if another should be ordered.

The collection period will run between November and May, and Mrs. Borst plans on hanging the first large collection with the help of National Grid before Memorial Day.

Applications can be found at the post office or Schoharie Free Library, or if a family reaches out to the team directly.

Mayor Colleen Henry and the rest of the Village Board were ecstatic about the idea, especially the notion of a year-round remembrance, but they cautioned Mrs. Borst about potentially needing a permit, as Route 30 belongs to the state.

However, with no obvious setbacks in sight, the Village Board fully supported Mrs. Borst and her team, saying that they look forward to the collection when Memorial Day rolls around.