Windsor honors seven military ‘Hometown Heroes’

David Williams and Sharon Rooney said they filled with pride when they learned their son, Marine First Lt. Connor Williams, was chosen as one of Windsor’s Hometown Heroes. When they were told a banner portrait of their son was placed near the Oliver’s Market outdoor barbecue grill, they thought it fitting.

“His name is Connor but we nicknamed him Carnivore - like a T-Rex,” said David Williams, a vice president at Community First Credit Union.

Lt. Williams, who last fall participated in a massive NATO-led military exercise in Norway, is stationed at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina. He was among seven young military service members honored Sunday during the Windsor Hometown Heroes ceremony at the Huerta Gymnasium.

Although their son was proud of his service and the town’s recognition, Rooney and Williams said he made it clear that, like others in the military, he merely was performing his duties.

“He said he’s not a hero,” Sharon Rooney said shortly after the noon ceremony. “He’s glad we’re here, but what he said was, ‘I’m not a hero.’?”

The annual ceremony pays tribute to military service members with ties to Windsor. The honorees either grew up in Windsor or have family who live there. They are nominated by friends or family and their applications are reviewed by a committee of volunteers.

If selected, large military banners with their portraits are displayed outside the Windsor Civic Center, and on light poles along and near Old Redwood Highway. The program is supported with funding from local sponsors and family members, and the banners remain in place until the young service members are no longer in the military.

“I’m so very proud and grateful for his service,” said Brenda Smith, the mother of Air Force Airman Evan Smith, who also was honored Sunday.

Smith said she was surprised to learn her son had been nominated and selected for the honor.

“It was kind of a surprise. I didn’t know anything about,” she said.

“It’s a wonderful, wonderful way to honor our service men and women.”

Evan Smith, who is stationed at Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, where he works as a C-17 heavy cargo plane mechanic, was the only one of the seven honorees who was able to attend.

Smith’s mother said her son still tries to come home every weekend and enjoys playing golf with his father.

Smith, who was born in Novato but moved to Windsor when he was an infant, said the military offered him a career opportunity and more.

“I joined to pursue my education and to better myself as a person,” he said.

The ceremony included presentations by the Sonoma County Sheriff Color Guard and other military groups.

The Windsor Children’s Community Choir welcomed the military service family members, singing the official songs of each of the four military branches represented.

“For me, it’s probably one of the most meaningful parts of my role as mayor, to be able to host this event,” said Windsor Mayor Dominic Foppoli.

Foppoli, who had just returned from attending a meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Washington, D.C., said Windsor is among only a handful of towns and cities that hold such ceremonies. He said a number of mayors he spoke to expressed interest in organizing similar annual events.

The other service members recognized at Sunday’s event were Army Private Adrian Mateo Flores, a 2018 Windsor High School grad who completed basic training last August and is now trained as a tank mechanic; Army Specialist Daniel Wayner, a fourth-generation American military service member whose grandfathers and other family members served in both world wars; Army Private Dominic Andrew Montañez, a 2018 Healdsburg High graduate who grew up in Windsor and was recently accepted to the Army Airborne School; Marine Private Jacob Morris, a 2018 Windsor High graduate currently stationed at Camp Pendleton; and Navy Seaman Tyler Davies, who spent much of his early childhood in Windsor schools.

The Windsor Hometown Heroes military banner ceremony is a joint program of the Windsor Town Council, the American Legion Post 111, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 768 and other organizations.

You can reach Staff Writer Martin Espinoza at 707-521-5213 or martin.espinoza@pressdemocrat.com.