For Memorial Day, Buffalo police honor Vietnam vets

For Memorial Day, Buffalo police honor Vietnam vets
By Gene Warner
News Staff Reporter

Those who served both their country and their community — first in Vietnam, later on the streets of Buffalo — finally received some recognition today with the unveiling of a plaque listing 66 Buffalo police officers who also served in Vietnam.

"It's much too little and much too late, but please accept this as a [token] of our gratitude," Buffalo Police Commissioner H. McCarthy Gipson told more than 100 people at a Memorial Day ceremony in police headquarters.

Two high-ranking Buffalo police officers who never stepped foot in Vietnam, Lt. Kenneth Bienko and Detective James A. Lema, spearheaded the four-year effort to remember other police officers who served.

"It's long overdue for these guys," Lema said after the 10-minute ceremony. "They put their lives on the line twice, once for our country and once for our city. This is just a small way of saying thank you."

Bienko, a Gulf War veteran, served 22 years in the Navy, Coast Guard and Army. Both the military and the Buffalo Police Department have been a huge part of his life.
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