Syracuse, N.Y. — Like the other politicians who visit the New York State Fair, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has a list of foods he must sample: a Gianneli sausage, Byrne Dairy chocolate milk or ice cream, Tully’s chicken tenders.
But New York’s senior senator has another stop each year. “I always go to Tony Nesci’s memorial,” he said while finishing up his Tully’s meal at a picnic table on Tuesday.
Anthony C. ‘Tony’ Nesci was a co-founder of the New York State Fairgrounds Veterans memorial. Funded through the nonprofit Nesci formed called the Eagle Association of Central New York, work on the memorial began in 1998, the year Schumer met Nesci while running for the U.S. Senate for the first time. The memorial opened a year later, and has undergone several expansions in the years since.
Nesci, a veteran himself who was a United Auto Workers union leader and a longtime New Process Gear plant worker, died in 2011 at age 70. A year later, a memorial plaque in his honor was unveiled by the Veterans Memorial at the fairgrounds.
“He led the way serving our community and country to make it a better place,” the plaque reads.
Schumer makes sure to see that plaque every year he visits the fair.
“Tony Nesci was a friend of mine, and he did so much for veterans,” Schumer said.
On Tuesday, he was greeted at the memorial by Joanie Antonacci, a longtime volunteer with the Eagle Association. As other fairgoers came up to ask for photos with the senator, he told them about Nesci. “He helped us get this built years ago,” he said.
Schumer got to his other planned stops on Tuesday, but he said his favorite part of coming to the fair is just meeting and greeting New Yorkers. Followed around by interns carrying “Meet SENATOR CHUCK SCHUMER” signs, the senator greeted hundreds if not thousands of fairgoers.
“Hello, everybody. I’m Chuck Schumer, your senator,” he said multiple times.
Schumer has been coming to the fair each year with the same…
Read the full article here
Leave a Reply