ELDRED, NY — The Vietnam War may have ended 50 years ago. But a group of men who were young at the time talked about their fateful decision – whether to fight or resist – with a conviction undimmed by age.

The occasion was Tuesday’s evening’s meet-and-greet with the Town of Highland’s new deputy supervisor, Glenn Pontier. Town hall was packed. Residents came out to support his appointment, or object to it, or just find out more. 

It was a simple town hall, but it raised some of humanity’s deepest questions. What does a citizen owe their country? What does an individual owe their conscience?

A lifelong pacifism

Pontier, 77, talked at great length about his life. He started with his father, a Dutch Reformed minister who moved his family from rectory to rectory, including for a stint at the Deerpark Dutch Reformed Church. His family lived their religious convictions, Pontier said, and that included a strong pacifism. He remains a pacifist today.

The veterans sat together in their American Legion caps and listened attentively. Pontier anticipated what they came to hear.

His talk ranged widely, from status updates on each of his five children, to why the Huguenots fled France, to his seminary education. He talked about the Quakers, the Berrigan brothers, the Christian concept of a just war.

He said he wanted to separate fact from the fictions going around town: Yes, he did serve 10 months in jail as a conscientious objector; but, no, he has never in his life disrespected a veteran. Yes, he protested the Vietnam War; but, no, he never burned an American flag. Yes, he could have served in the military as a non-combatant; but no, that would have violated his faith.

“My family was very proud because I was living my beliefs,” he said. “There was no dishonor to being in jail. There was an honor that you weren’t going to kill.”

But, he said, the country that calls its citizens to war must firmly support those who answer that call.

“You don’t ask somebody to do that, take a life,” he said. “You owe them.”

He said he did not take the easy way out by accepting a school deferment, feigning an illness, or moving to Canada.

Veterans uncomfortable with appointment

Pontier said that on President Jimmy Carter’s first full day in office, he pardoned Pontier and all the other Americans who violated the Military Selective Service Act during the war.

A veteran stood up. “I voted for Jimmy Carter,” he said.

He then pointed to Pontier’s arrest by the FBI and subsequent conviction. “So, you’re a draft dodger,” he said. “So, you’re a felon.”

But then he softened. “I think you’re a great person, but not the right person,” he said finally.

The veterans and their supporters said it mattered who represented them. Those who laid their lives on the line for their country saw Pontier’s turn away from military service as an affront.

“There are other people in town who are capable,” one veteran said.

Another veteran recalled getting “a letter from Uncle Sam” while attending college in Albany. It was 1969.

“People miss what happens to veterans when they come home,” he said. Referring to Pontier, he added, “I feel extremely uncomfortable with him representing all our residents.”

Another veteran said Pontier “lost handily” when he ran for town board in 2015. Should the supervisor be unable to perform his duties, he said, “This town would be run by someone who was not chosen.”

Some audience members offered John Sundholm and Fred Bosch as examples of other deputy supervisors who were not elected town officials at the time of their appointments. New York law allows the supervisor to choose whomever they want for deputy supervisor, including non-elected officials.

The new supervisor, Johnny Pizzolato, appointed Pontier and set up the town meeting to introduce him to a questioning community. He said that while there are many people in town he can tap for their expertise on veterans’ matters, not many have Pontier’s skill set.

“We respect each and every one of you,” he told the veterans. “We will not dishonor you in any way.”

Debra Conway, the town historian, pushed back against the idea of military service guiding decisions about town appointments. 

“Give the guy a chance,” she told the veterans. “This is what people fought for, so we can co-exist with different opinions.”

The rumor mill

Pontier’s long work history in the public and private sector include roles in county government and in the media, including 17 years as editor of the River Reporter. He said he worked for “super-Marine” Alan Gerry, the founder and CEO of Cablevision Industries, who never objected to his employee’s lack of military service.

Pontier knocked down another rumor—that as a poll worker he has unfairly stopped Republicans from voting. But he has never been a poll watcher, he said, only an election inspector. And he has never been unfair to Republicans. Pizzolato said the board of elections confirmed this.

Even as many attendees remained resistant to Pontier’s appointment, they were respectful and engaged. As people mingled afterward, there was a general agreement that it was good to hash things out together and in person.

Earlier, toward the end of the meeting, a man stood up and said he’d lived in Highland for 12 years. “What bugs me about this community is I hear all kinds of rumors and dirt,” he said.

So he came to town hall out of frustration. And, he said, he was glad finally “to hear the backstory.”

Editor's note: See related story "Pontier was supervisor through the storm."