TOMS RIVER – Two grand marshals who represent two different service branches of the U.S. military, the United States Coast Guard and the United States Navy, will lead this year’s Veteran’s Parade in Toms River.
At the recent Township Council meeting, the two were presented with proclamations from the governing body.
Toms River resident and High School East graduate Daniel Herr enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard and after completing basic training, he served as an aid to navigation technician on the Coast Guard Cutter William Tate out of Philadelphia.
In 2000, he started his career as a Police Officer in Seaside Heights and proceeded to join the NYPD after the events of September 11, 2001. He then was called to active duty in 2003 in support of Operations Noble Eagle and Enduring Freedom.
Herr was assigned to Station Atlantic City as a crewmember after being discharged from active duty. He was awarded an Honorable Discharge after completing his service in 2008.
He retired from the NYPD in the spring of 2007, and was appointed a Police Officer in Toms River in August 2007. He was assigned to the Underwater Response Team and Toms River EMS Unit with a specialty as an Overwatch/Sniper. He attended FBI Sniper School and the New Mexico Tech Initial Law Enforcement Response to Suicide Bombing Attacks and with his experience was assigned as a field-training officer. He retired from the Toms River Police Department in June 2022.
He received numerous medals and ribbons including: two Meritorious Police Awards from New York City, two Excellence in Police Duty Awards, Kings County Congressman’s Certificate of Recognition, Marine Corps League Certificate of Appreciation, and awards from the Toms River Police Department including the Firearms Proficiency Award, Distinguished Expert and Officer of the Month Award.
The second grand marshal, Siegfried Jaworski (Sieggy), was born in Hamburg, Germany and he and his family came to America via ship to Ellis Island in 1952.
He enlisted in the U.S. Navy in December 1968, serving four years. He became a United States citizen, first living in Kearney and later moving to Toms River in 1997 where he and his wife currently reside.
He previously worked for Verizon for 40 years before retiring in 2010. Jaworski became a member of the Toms River Elks Lodge #1875 in 2006, where he previously served as chaplain and is currently serving as a trustee.
Parade Details
This year’s parade will start at 9:45 a.m. on November 11. The parade begins at the Toms River Shopping Center on Route 37 and will travel south on Main Street (Route 166) and then east onto Washington Street. The parade will conclude with a ceremony in front of Town Hall which features speakers and honored guests, including a placing of the wreath on the veterans monument.
There is no rain date. If bad weather is forecast, the student participation will be canceled at 5 p.m. the day prior to the parade. Announcements will be made on 92.7 WOBM and posted on the township’s website.
If the parade is canceled, a ceremony will take place in Town Hall in the L. Manuel Hirshblond Meeting Room (large upstairs meeting hall) at 10 a.m.
