Memorial Day Preview: A Day of Remembrance

Memorial Day brings to mind long weekends at the beach and backyard barbecues. But this Monday, and as we enjoy the day off, it is important to remember why our celebrations are possible, says American Legion Post 53 Commander Bob Paoli.

“The problem with having Memorial Day on a Monday like this, is that people are more concerned about going to the beach, and forget the significance of what Memorial Day means,” he said. “Especially right now, with the fighting going on overseas.”

Memorial Day is a national holiday that commemorates U.S. men and woman who have died while in military service.

“They gave their lives in combat, volunteered their services, and without question, obeyed orders and carried out their duties to make sure that their loved ones and everything that’s dear to them is protected,” said Paoli.

The American Legion will host its annual ceremony in Van Neste Square, beginning at 11 a.m. with an invocation given by the Rev. Robert Minor of Grace Church, and Nick Moreth will sing the National Anthem.

Councilwoman Bernadette Walsh is on the agenda to speak, as well as two daughters of a Medal of Honor recipient, Master Sgt. Charles Hosking. Typically, recipients are buried in Arlington National Cemetery, but the family opted to have Sgt. Hosking buried right here in Valleau Cemetery, so that they could visit his grave more easily.

RHS Senior David Cunningham will read his essay “What Americanism Means to Me,” an piece that is representative of young American patriotism.

“It’s important that [young people] know what their fathers and grandfathers have done for them,” said Paoli, who experienced the effects of war first-hand as a teenager. “We always turned out for parades and to salute the memory of our comrades. Today it’s different, it’s out of mind and out of sight.”

Following the essay, young Ridgewood candidates for military academies will read the names of all 113 Ridgewood residents who have been killed during wartime, since the Spanish-American War. They will be assisted by two Eagle Scouts.

Cunnigham and GW student Kenneth Marshal will play the iconic “Taps” salute on trumpets. Members of the Ridgewood High School Band will also perform, directed by Jeff Haas, The Cavaliers of Harmony, a mens Barbershop-style a capella group, will also sing.

The ceremony will close with a benediction by Ridgewood resident and veteran Rev. Harry Green III.

Paoli expects between 200 and 300 people will attend this year’s service. “It gets better every year because the word gets out,” he said. “I get a tremendous feeling of satisfaction and pride that I’ve done a little something in order to remember the meaning of the day."