May 26, 2007 9:06 pm US/Eastern
Gov. Corzine Happy To Be Out Making Speeches
N.J. Gov. Launches New Commercial For Seatbelt Awareness
NORTH HANOVER TOWNSHIP, N.J. (CBS/AP) ―
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New Jersey's governor says it's great to be back out in public as he continues to recover from a near-fatal car accident.
Gov. Jon S. Corzine received a standing ovation from a crowd of several hundred on Saturday as he used crutches to make his way to the podium during his first public speaking appearance since the April 12 accident.
There was even a moment of levity during the solemn Memorial Day weekend ceremony when the microphone Corzine was using fell and made a thudding sound as he was starting to speak.
"I've been known to have a crash or two," Corzine said to laughter and applause.
Speaking at the Brigadier General William C. Doyle Veterans Memorial Cemetery in North Hanover Township, Corzine said, "It's great to be out of the house and be with all of you."
"But it is even more heartwarming to be here to be a part of the privilege of saying thank you to all of those who've sacrificed so much, the great men and women who've put down their lives to make America and to make New Jersey what it is," Corzine said.
Corzine spoke about the importance of taking care of the nation's veterans, including those coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan, and called for members of the National Guard and reservists to be treated the same as those who serve in the regular military.
Tony Petrovich, a 79-year-old from Point Pleasant Borough who was in the Merchant Marine for 57 years, attended the ceremony for the second time Saturday.
"This memorial is nice because I have a lot of friends buried here and it was a nice respect we showed for them," he said.
As for the governor attending the ceremony, "I really liked seeing that he came," Petrovich said.
Corzine broke his leg, 11 ribs, collarbone and sternum in the high-speed car accident along the Parkway. He spent 18 days in a Camden hospital, much of it in intensive care and breathing with help from a ventilator. He was released from the hospital April 30 and resumed work as governor on May 7.
Since then, Corzine has been working from the governor's mansion in Princeton, but said he hopes to return to the Statehouse in Trenton soon.
He left the governor's mansion last Saturday for the first time since leaving the hospital, taking trips to have meals with family, see doctors and attend church in Summit.
Corzine wasn't wearing his seat belt in the crash. He voluntarily paid a $46 fine and apologized to the state. On Thursday he released a public service announcement urging people to wear seat belts.
Besides the speech in North Hanover Township, Corzine was also scheduled to speak at a Memorial Day ceremony Monday at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial off the Garden State Parkway in Holmdel.
(© 2007 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
SLIDESHOW: N.J. Governor Seriously Hurt In Accident
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