Plymouth, Canton Events to Honor Veterans on Memorial Day

Memorial Day weekend – the first holiday weekend of summer, as it's called, is a few days away – a time for parades, picnics and perhaps a cottage-opening trip up north.

It's also a more solemn occasion for many families, as befits the name Memorial Day. Graveside visits, flag placements and memories of former service members are part of the late May ritual for millions of Americans.

In Plymouth, ceremonies begin downtown with the parade kicking off at Wing and Harvey Streets at 9 a.m. Monday. The parade will proceed north, ending at the Plymouth Veterans Memorial Park at Main and Church streets for a memorial ceremony.

The ceremony will include laying of the wreaths for each military branch. Matthew Berta, an Iraq War veteran will be this year's speaker. 

The parade will include Korean War veterans, American Legion Posts 112 and 391, VFW Post 6695, the Canton Young Marines, girl scout and boy scout troops and Plymouth United Soccer. 

Lee Ekholm, one of the event organizers, said he's also hoping for a fly over during the parade this year. 

Canton will celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Canton Veterans Memorial with a Memorial Day service at Heritage Park, just west of the Canton Municipal Complex, 1150 S. Canton Center Road in Canton. The service takes place at 1 p.m. Monday.

Also in Canton, the BeckRidge Chorale will perform its patriotic Because of the Brave set Monday at the Village Theater at Cherry Hill at 1 and 3 p.m. Tickets are $10 and may be purchased at www.beckridgechorale.org or by calling 888-459-4887.

Memorial Day, also called Decoration Day, began after the Civil War ended. According to the U.S. Department of Veterans AffairsDay was Waterloo, N.Y., where a ceremony was held on May 5, 1966. Businesses closed and residents flew flags at half-staff.

However, it wasn't until after World War I that Memorial Day was expanded to honor veterans who have died in all American wars. Memorial Day was officially declared a national holiday by Congress in 1971.