The New York State Police Troop C at Sidney hosted its annual Memorial Day service, honoring fallen comrades-in-arms, Friday, May 30.
Troop C Commander Major Lucas Shuta, who led the event, called the ceremony “one of the most important things we do.”
“You have to remember those who have given their lives,” he said. “They came to work, just like we did, today … and gave the ultimate sacrifice.”
Shuta, who said the ceremony is attended by “about 200 every year,” called the turnout “fantastic.”
“It’s family, it’s retired members, and it is the thing to do,” he said. “They get to reconnect with people they haven’t seen in a while and remember those who have passed on. And many people make quite a trip, so it’s really good to see.
“We honor their duty, courage and ultimate sacrifice,” Shuta continued. “They were peacekeepers, protectors and public servants.”
Vicki West, of Hartwick, attended in honor of her son, an active senior investigator with Troop C, and her late husband, a mechanic with the branch.
“I have been invited every year, and I’m impressed that they invite me,” she said. “It’s very nice, and they did a lot when my husband passed away several years ago. The state police have been so wonderful to our family and provided us with everything. They said, ‘We’re family,’ so I come to the memorial service and I am honored to be here.”
Retired troopers Tom Winterstein and Ben Weingartner, both 84, said they make a point of attending annually.
“Oh, absolutely, we come pretty much every year,” said Winterstein, who retired in 1990 as a technical sergeant. “It’s thanking them for their service.”
“It’s for the ones that have left,” said Weingartner, who retired in 1980. “It’s remembering all of the troopers we’ve worked with and that aren’t here today.”
To the list of 18 fallen Troop C officers memorialized at the Sidney site for line-of-duty deaths, Steven P. Bilodeau was added this year.
“He died as a result of cancer,” Shuta said, noting that Bilodeau’s cancer was caused by on-site work following the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks in New York City. “He served for 31 years and retired in 2010.” Bilodeau died Aug. 22, 2024.
Also highlighted was the 80th anniversary of Trooper Kenneth Knapp’s death and the 50th anniversary of Captain Samuel Rowe’s. Family members of Knapp and Rowe performed the traditional memorial wreath placement.
According to division literature, “Troop C serves 560,000 of its fellow citizens, stretching from the Catskill Mountains in the southwest, north through Oneonta and west through Cortland, Binghamton, Waverly, Ithaca, and the eastern Finger Lakes.” Troop C includes “390 members and civilian employees deployed in 15 installations across the seven counties encompassed by the troop.”