KELLY VOLL The Citizen PORT BYRON — Families of veter ans lost to war , retired vet- erans,active duty service mem- bers, teachers and community members were honored with lush evergreen wreaths Friday as Port Byron students honored those who fought for their freedom. For the second year , the Dana L. We st High School Student Gov- ernment Organization held a Wreaths Across America cere- mony to honor those who have served our nation and to remem- ber those who served and are no longer alive. Linda To wnsend, a teacher at Port Byron and the SGO advisor, and students read from a script provided by Wreaths Across Amer- ica — a nonprofit organization that aims to expand the wreath- laying tradition at Arlington National Cemetery and elsewher e. “We can travel from one end of this great nation to the other and not have to ask permission to go, ” student Ran dy David read from the script. “We are free to vote for whomever we feel should to T ownsend. Townsend and Port Byron students will be present at the public ceremony that will be held at noon today at The Episcopal Church of SS . Peter and John in Auburn, by the Vietnam Vet er- ans Chapter 704. Marine and Prisoners of War/Miss- ing in Action. In addition to holding their own ceremony and participating in Auburn’ s, the students sold wreaths this year and in years past to help people honor and recog- nize loved ones. Port Byron native and Port Byron high school graduat e retired Rear Adm.Richard West,whose father is Dana L. We st High School’ s namesake,was the keynote speak- er.West recalled his childhood in Port Byron — playing ba ll, going to school and not thinking much about conflicts over seas. Little did he know he would spend his life in the Navy. “I served with the greatest Sarah Jean Condon / The Citizen Retired Rea r Adm. and Port Byron high school graduate Richard West talks about his experience in the Navy , and about honoring the past, present, and f uture veterans of the United St ates military. Citizen. T HE SATURDAY , DECEMBER 10, 2011 75 cents ■ © 2011, A Division of Lee Enterprises THE CITIZEN, AUBURN, NEW YORK INSIDE OPINION Today High 33 Low 23 Aurelius Officials continue to monitor wells after big September fuel spill. See Page A3. INSIDE SPORTS Moravia wrestling hosts Auburn, Southern Cayuga. INSIDE LAKE LIFE See Page A12. INSIDE NATION / WORLD Witnesses say staff fled as India hospital burned. See Page A5. Their view The “ Lake Life Kentucky communities were shaped by their Shaker roots. See Page B4. Ira Fast-moving fire routs family from home. See Page A3. Union Springs makes big fourth-quarter comeback to take Marathon into OT. See Page A12. FDA panel approves birth-control patch despite risk of clots, Page A5 QUICK NEWS WOLVES WIN WILD ONE St. Mary’s hopes show will be entertaining, inspiring. See Page B1. Wreaths honor sacrifice Sarah Jean Condon / The Citizen Port Byron community members gather Friday at Dana L. We st High School i n Port Byron for Wreaths Across America, a program honoring veterans. Port Byron students recognize area veterans U.S. ARMED FORCES PORT BYRON Park gets splash of cash State funds bring Old Erie Canal plan closer to reality . ▼ SAMANTHA HOUSE The Citizen Port Byron is soon due to enjoy a $150,000 slice of a $103.7 million economic grant pie. On Thursday,t he New York State Regional Economic Development Council program awarded the nine- figure sum to 74 central New York projects, 12 of which are based in Cayuga County . Among the 12 is the $150,000 grant meant to benefit Port Byron through an effort to develop a canal park. Awarded to the Canal Society of New Y ork State, the grant is intend- ed to help make the long-desired Port Byron Old Erie Canal Heritage Park a reality. Thomas Grasso,president of the canal society,is grateful for the fund- ing. “We think (the park’s) got poten- tial,and thank God, so do other p eo- ple, ” he said. The proposed park project is near- ly 15 years in the making. Grasso said the proposed Port Byron Old Erie Canal Heritage Park will be a rest-stop park — the only known project of its kind in the coun- try — off of the state Thruway between the Weedsport exit and the Port Byron rest stop.Attendants will enter the park through a visitor’s center . The park’ s trail, snaking away from the visitor center , will lead from Locke 52 to the Erie House and end at a blacksmith’s barn. “It will be a very unique site for probably the whole United States, certainly in New York state, ” Gras- so said. “There isn’t access to some- thing like that.” With the canal society’s one-of- kind vis ion, Gras so sai d, bringing the park to fruition isn’t an easy task. To create access to the proposed park, a ramp off of the Thruway must be constructed. The visitor’ s cen- ter will need to be built from scratch, and the crumbling remains of Locke 52, the Erie House a nd the black- smith’s barn will require extensive restorations. In other words,the Canal Society of New Y ork State needs money, a resource the society has struggled to collect for more than a decade, making the $150,000 grant just the infusion the society was seeking. IF YOU GO What: Wr eaths Across America When: Noo n toda y,Dec. 10 Where: The Episcopa l Church of SS. Peter and Joh n, 169 Genesee St.,Auburn Info: Wr eath-laying for the Army , Navy , Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard, Mercha nt Marines and POW/MIA