Highland, NY (Town of Lloyd)

Highland NY is a small upstate New York Town 90 miles north of New York City. The small town of about 10,000 has lost 3 soldiers to the Iraq War. Eugene Williams and Doran Chan are the other 2 young Highland High School graduates who also lost their lives serving their country.

If you don’t know about Highland, New York, this quote from an article in the New York Times sums it up.

”You have to understand, all the relationships here are so layered,” said Peter Harris, who coached Mr. Oremus on the high school soccer team and taught him English. ”You know people, you know their brothers and their parents, you know them for generations. So I held Michael when he was a baby, I played with him when he was 2 or 3, I coached him in high school, I played soccer with him after he graduated, as a friend. You don’t experience that most places in the world. But you do here.”

Nicky Baker, best friend and cousin of Mikey stated that Mikey Oremus bled Highland’s High School colors, Blue and Gold. The foundation will seek to continue to support recreation activities in the town that Mikey loved so much. We know that Highland and its community will never forget Mikey O and his contagious smile.

The town, lead by Roberta DeMaio , even got behind Mikey’s 57th Military Police Company, 728th Battalion, 8th Military Police Brigade in Iraq by successfully completing “Operation Mikey O”. This operation sent everyday items from shampoo to journals to the soldiers before the Christmas Holiday.

Feel free to post your thoughts about the town of Highland below.