{"id":27763,"date":"2021-09-01T16:48:01","date_gmt":"2021-09-01T20:48:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/?p=27763"},"modified":"2021-09-01T16:48:01","modified_gmt":"2021-09-01T20:48:01","slug":"batavia-va-wny-healthcare-system-celebrates-resident-sydney-coles-107th-birthday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2021\/09\/01\/batavia-va-wny-healthcare-system-celebrates-resident-sydney-coles-107th-birthday\/","title":{"rendered":"BATAVIA\/VA WNY Healthcare System Celebrates Resident Sydney Cole\u2019s 107th Birthday"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"900\" height=\"507\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/uc3J69q1iGg?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/div><figcaption>Video of Captain Sydney Cole&#8217;s 107th Birthday Celebration<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Press release<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">BUFFALO, NEW YORK: On Wednesday, September 1st, from 1-3pm, VA Western New York Healthcare System  recognized Sydney Cole, Spruce Lodge Community Living Center\u2019s oldest resident, with a special party to celebrate his 107th birthday. The birthday bash for Mr. Cole was held with family and staff at the outdoor patio entrance of Building 4, Batavia VA Medical Center site, 222 Richmond Avenue, Batavia, New York.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As a captain and reconnaissance pilot for the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II, Sydney Cole was shot down over the skies of Bastogne, Belgium, during the epic \u201cBattle of the Bulge\u201d and was later taken as a prisoner of war by the Nazis. Sydney Cole is one of the oldest WWII Veterans still living and is believed to be the oldest Veteran cared for by Veteran Affairs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Born in Buffalo in 1914 and later becoming a champion swimmer in high school, Mr. Cole\u2019s life and military service has been highlighted over the last few years during many ceremonies held in his honor. On several interviews he has offered painful stories and reflections as a former POW. When shot down on January 2, 1945, Sydney was in a bitter battle for his survival from the enemy as well as the horrible weather. Badly injured from shrapnel and ground arms fire he sustained in the cockpit while descending to the ground, only his parachute was available to wrap himself up against the bitter winter\u2019s sub-zero cold, the worst winter in <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">decades. After lying unconscious for what he thought were a few days until the Nazis captured him, his tattered body was thrown on top of a tank for transport eastward. Before losing consciousness, however, Captain Cole was wise enough to remove and throw his dog tags into the woods that identified him as \u201cH\u201d for Hebrew. Had the enemy determined he was Jewish, he would have been shot on the spot or sent to a concentration camp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Despite suffering horrible beatings and treatment as a POW, shrinking from 150 to 80 pounds, Captain Cole survived the last five months of the war in Europe by sheer will. His true grit as the ranking leader along with a positive attitude in the camp saved the lives of many POWs who had almost given up. He was eventually repatriated after The Russian Army took over his POW camp in the spring of 1945.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After the war, Sydney married and went quickly back to work, owning and developing several successful businesses to include a car dealership, a liquor store and athletic club in downtown Buffalo. In 2016, his old high school, now called City Honors, awarded him his high school diploma in a special ceremony. More recently, Sydney was inducted into the New York State Veterans Hall of Fame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sydney still suffers from the frostbite of that terrible Western Front winter of January 1945, wearing thin cotton gloves at times to keep his hands comfortable. Despite his cold hands, Sydney has a warm smile and cheerful heart for the multitude of special friends and his son Richard who see him regularly at VA\u2019s Spruce Lodge Community Living Center. There, precious, first-hand accounts stories of the greatest generation are willingly told. Happy birthday Sydney and many more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Press release BUFFALO, NEW YORK: On Wednesday, September 1st, from 1-3pm, VA Western New York Healthcare System recognized Sydney Cole, Spruce Lodge Community Living Center\u2019s oldest resident, with a special party to celebrate his 107th birthday. The birthday bash for Mr. Cole was held with family and staff at the \u2026<\/p>\n<p class=\"continue-reading-button\"> <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2021\/09\/01\/batavia-va-wny-healthcare-system-celebrates-resident-sydney-coles-107th-birthday\/\">Continue reading<i class=\"crycon-right-dir\"><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27764,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[8,23],"tags":[2782,2387],"class_list":["post-27763","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-batavia","category-genesee-county","tag-107th-birthday-party","tag-captain-sydney-cole"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8eTP4-7dN","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":19229,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2020\/09\/02\/batavia-veteran-celebrates-his-106th-birthday-at-the-va\/","url_meta":{"origin":27763,"position":0},"title":"BATAVIA\/Veteran celebrates his 106th birthday at the VA","author":"aka","date":"September 2, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Dr. Maller, Geriatrics Chief, Spruce Lodge\u2019s Mary C. Miller, SW, Richard Cole, son, Sydney and Paulette Welker\/Provided photo\/VA WNY Healthcare System\u00a0 Provided photo\/VA WNY Healthcare System (Information provided by VA WNY Healthcare System) World War II Veteran Sydney Cole celebrated his 106th birthday at the Spruce Lodge Community Living Center\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Batavia&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Batavia","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/gennesse-county\/batavia\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/thumbnail_0901201404a_HDR.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/thumbnail_0901201404a_HDR.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/thumbnail_0901201404a_HDR.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/thumbnail_0901201404a_HDR.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/thumbnail_0901201404a_HDR.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":21176,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2020\/12\/04\/wny-106-year-old-former-u-s-army-air-corps-captain-re-issued-a-special-membership-award-today-at-the-batavia-va\/","url_meta":{"origin":27763,"position":1},"title":"WNY\/106 year-old former U.S Army Air Corps Captain, re-issued a special membership award today at the Batavia VA","author":"aka","date":"December 4, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"(Submitted photos and information from VA WNY Healthcare System) \u201cOn January 2, 1945 at 11:00a.m., 2nd Lieutenant Sydney Cole was forced to jump out of his disabled Piper Cub airplane over the skies of Belgium and into German-held territory. He deployed his Irvin backpack-style parachute at an altitude of 1000\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;WNY&quot;","block_context":{"text":"WNY","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/wny\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/syd-holding-certificate.jpg?fit=640%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/syd-holding-certificate.jpg?fit=640%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/syd-holding-certificate.jpg?fit=640%2C480&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":16234,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2020\/05\/01\/batavia-vietnam-vet-released-from-va-hospital-after-surgeries-and-recovering-from-covid-19\/","url_meta":{"origin":27763,"position":2},"title":"BATAVIA\/Vietnam Vet released from VA hospital after surgeries and recovering from COVID-19","author":"aka","date":"May 1, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/r_gXncj3gxQ A Vietnam Veteran who has recovered from several surgeries and COVID-19 was discharged Friday morning from the VA Western New York Healthcare System in Batavia, 222 Richmond Avenue. 72 year old Robert Korzeniewski was transported to the Batavia VA on March 30th along with nine other Veterans from the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Batavia&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Batavia","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/gennesse-county\/batavia\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/still.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/still.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/still.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/still.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/still.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":67330,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2025\/08\/21\/genesee-county-captain-albano-desperate-man-featured-in-100000-kane-memorial-at-batavia-saturday\/","url_meta":{"origin":27763,"position":3},"title":"GENESEE COUNTY\/Captain Albano, Desperate Man featured in $100,000 Kane Memorial at Batavia Saturday","author":"aka","date":"August 21, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"By Tim Bojarski, for Batavia Downs Batavia, NY --- On Saturday (Aug. 23), Batavia Downs will present the 19th\u00a0Robert J. Kane Memorial Invitational Pace. The race\u00a0is named in honor of the former chairman of the Western Regional Off Track Betting Corporation (WROTB) and his vision for a defunct racetrack. In\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Batavia&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Batavia","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/gennesse-county\/batavia\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Captain-Albano-Conrad-Photo.jpg?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Captain-Albano-Conrad-Photo.jpg?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Captain-Albano-Conrad-Photo.jpg?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Captain-Albano-Conrad-Photo.jpg?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":73451,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2026\/03\/20\/batavia-eleven-seniors-from-batavia-high-school-will-compete-for-the-title-of-mr-batavia-on-march-27th\/","url_meta":{"origin":27763,"position":4},"title":"BATAVIA\/Eleven seniors from Batavia High School will compete for the title of \u201cMr. Batavia\u201d on March 27th","author":"aka","date":"March 20, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Press release Eleven seniors from Batavia High School will compete for the title of\u201cMr. Batavia\u201d at the 13th annual competition, which will be held on Friday, March 27, at 7 p.m. in the Frank E. Owen Auditorium at Batavia High School. Each contestant represents a local organization. All organizations will\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Batavia&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Batavia","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/gennesse-county\/batavia\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":46774,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2023\/09\/08\/batavia-va-wny-healthcare-system-911-remembrance-ceremony-planned\/","url_meta":{"origin":27763,"position":5},"title":"BATAVIA\/VA WNY Healthcare System 911 Remembrance Ceremony planned","author":"aka","date":"September 8, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"(Provided photo) Press release VA Western New York Healthcare System will host a Remembrance ceremony on the lawn of the Batavia VA Medical Center on Monday September 11th at 11am at 222 Richmond Avenue, Batavia, NY 14020. Welcome remarks - Royce Calhoun Associate Medical Center Director, Commentary \u2013 NYS Senator\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Batavia&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Batavia","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/gennesse-county\/batavia\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/thumbnail_image002.png?fit=765%2C302&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/thumbnail_image002.png?fit=765%2C302&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/thumbnail_image002.png?fit=765%2C302&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/thumbnail_image002.png?fit=765%2C302&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/still-sydney.jpg?fit=640%2C360&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27763","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27763"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27763\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27766,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27763\/revisions\/27766"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27764"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27763"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27763"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27763"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}