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Sharing Memories And Keeping Our Eyes On The Prize

photo provided While his military service took him around the world, home for Martin has always been the streets of the Little City and the state he is proud to call home.

photo provided Standing in the Legion Post he helped to create, Martin not only passes on his own story to teens but his commitment to all service people and all citizens of Addison County.

Tuesday April 8, 2014

By Cookie Steponaitis

It was 1941 when Martin Casey and his fifty-one classmates walked out of their graduation ceremonies to find America in flux and a nation at war. Martin Casey was born on North Water Street, now McDonough Drive in his grandparent's home and the roots run deep. He was raised in Addison County and has called this area home as have five generations of Casey’s and Daniels before him. Martin Casey is connected to Addison County by his family history, love of the region and the pure delight in meeting new people and sharing stories. He lights up any room with a smile that simply has not dimmed over time. Martin spoke to a class of high school sophomores as he does each year and shared memories of not only being proud of  growing up Addison County but his years as a soldier in World War Two, his sixty plus years of marriage, his family and his firm belief in being a part of civic change.
    “It's good to see all your smiling faces this morning,” quipped Martin to the students. “Then at my age it’s simply good to be seen.” When laughter filled the room Martin looked around one more time and told the teens sitting in the back of the room to come up front so everyone could hear better. “You know when I started doing this a few years back I wasn't too sure what a bunch of young kids would get out of listening to an old man talk,” reflected Martin Casey, “but several of you have come up to me on the streets and shared that you learned a lot as well as enjoyed meeting me. That really keeps a guy young.” By moving into a circle the setting became casual and Martin began to ‘school’ the young-uns about life in Addison County in 1941 and what the world looked like to a young man headed off into the military. “The first myth that has to go is that the town is one mile square. It simply is not. Officially it is 400 rods east to west and 480 rods north to south. The average is about 1.8 miles.” What is correct Martin assured the teens is that since its creation Vergennes and Addison County has been shaped by the collective efforts of local people and others who came to the Champlain Valley who understand, treasure and keep alive its unique heritage.
    While the official focus of the presentation was what it was like in this area and nation during the Great Depression and World War Two years, Martin focused on the role of community service, community involvement and the lessons learned from working with others. As one of the original founding members of the Lions Club, a part of the Opera House renovation project and someone who has held town offices including City Clerk and Treasurer, Martin is also a lifelong member of American Legion Post #14 and has held every position they have had including Post Commander on four separate occasions. Martin was asked to explain why his generation was so involved and he stated the answer was really quite simple. “We realized just how much we had to lose after World war Two,” he explained. “We learned from the generation before us to help others and to find solutions to problems. While the world has changed a lot today the equation is still the same. People acting together in a common interest make change happen. Nothing slick or even fancy. It takes effort and decisions made based on a collective idea of benefiting people and life in the community.”
    During his military career Martin saw battles in both the European Front and Pacific Front and came home for a thirty day leave when the Nazis had surrendered. He shipped out again and arrived off the coast of Japan shortly after the dropping of the first atomic bomb and did not return to the Champlain Valley for another eight months. It was 1946 when Martin Casey once again stood on the streets of his Little City and began to contemplate life after a war, a world turned upside down and a life that had already taken him around the globe and given him a unique set of skills.
    Martin was active in the U.S. military in the Army Reserves for twenty seven years and shared with the students not only the memory of leaving New York Harbor sailing to the war and France but the images that are still with him today of leaving Seattle, Washington and heading to Japan with stops in the Caroline Islands and the Philippines. When asked if he felt a part of the ‘Greatest Generation’ using the phrase coined by Tom Brokaw in reference to the men and women of the World War Two generation, Martin paused for a moment and put it all into perspective. “Are we the Greatest Generation?” queried Martin. “No, we are definitely not. I believe we have yet to see the greatest generation. It is either that or to be despondently heartbroken because each generation is brought up to hand off to the youth the next leg of the race and to believe that they will aspire to a greatness of their own. If we do it right they are brought up to be better people than our generation and ours to the one before us. America's greatest days are ahead and not behind. I have firm faith in the youth of today.”
    A son, husband, father, soldier, citizen and now local historian Martin Casey embodies more than just ninety years of history. He speaks from his heart of a place and time and is a living legacy that is presently being passed from one generation to the next.  Martin believes like many of his time the lessons of family, manners, faith, service and the comprehension that America is a special place and that the Champlain Valley, connected by tangible links from past to present. The sense of home reaches out linking  generations on the land, a firm hand shake and a sense of clarity about what makes this place special. The prize that Martin speaks of is really quite simple and visible to all of us each day. It is the children or the next generation and as they move forward to take their place in America's future path, Martin and his generation are watching with interest, faith and if need be a lesson or two on how to get the job done.

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