Returning vet honors Pike

MILFORD, PA — The tables were turned on June 23 when Pike County officials, who have in recent months been honoring military personnel returning from active duty, were themselves honored for the county’s support of the military.

Staff Sergeant Konstantino Erbach is a member of Company A, 1st Battalion of the 109th Infantry National Guard unit in Honesdale, and is recently returned from more than a year of active duty in Bosnia. Erbach, who is also a Pike correctional officer, appeared before the county commissioners last Wednesday to present his boss, Warden Craig Lowe, and the commissioners with a National Guard commemorative medal and a certificate of recognition for their “continued support of United States military personnel and their missions both home and abroad.”

Commissioner Richard Caridi, who has been outspoken in his support of the service people, has also made a point of saying that the commissioners’ support of the troops was not a demonstration of support for national policy. Last week, following the meeting, Caridi and commissioners’ chair Harry Forbes voiced some concerns about the impact of extended overseas postings on the National Guard families left at home.

“You’ve got people overseas, with their lives on the line, fighting, some of them losing their lives and at home their families are on [public assistance]. It’s a damn disgrace,” he said.

“That’s what you get with an all volunteer armed forces, Forbes said adding, “The federal government should have thought this through.”