Dozens of local residents lined Halstead Avenue on Monday morning to watch the town/village of Harrison Memorial Day parade, which took off just after 10 a.m. at the corner of Halstead and Thatcher avenues.
Councilwoman Marlane Amelio, who marched in the parade alongside the other members of the Harrison Town Council, joked that the parade took place “in between raindrops,” after the heavy rainfall just before the parade began.
Along with the council, other groups that marched included members of the West Harrison Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5463, the Harrison High School marching band, Harrison EMS and the Harrison Police and Fire departments.
The lively festivities were followed by a more somber remembrance ceremony in Ma Riis Park, where several local veterans of foreign wars made speeches.
“Today is not about the living veterans, but it is about our brothers and sisters that have passed on,” said Maj. Ben Martinez, commander of VFW Post 5463. “Do not mourn for them; remember and celebrate them, reflect on your lives, and reconcile your life with their sacrifice.”
Master Chief Frank Robinson, who made his career in the U.S. Navy, spoke at length about the true significance of Memorial Day, which he said has been lost on many Americans who have not served in the military.
“I once asked a boy who was about 12 what Memorial Day meant, and he told me, ‘The beginning of summer,’” Robinson said. “Today’s generation and forgetful members of older generations do not understand the significance of the sacrifices made by the men and women who died for our freedom. To those people, Memorial Day is just another excuse for a three-day weekend.”
Also in attendance at the ceremony were the widow and two children of Tech Sgt. Joseph Lemm. Lemm was a West Harrison resident in the Air National Guard who sacrificed his life this year, along with his team member Staff Sgt. Louis Bonasca, when they put themselves between a suicide bomber and several other Airmen in Afghanistan, which prevented some of their fellow team members from being killed by the blast.
Lemm’s name was the most recent to be added to the Honor Roll Memorial in Ma Riis Park, which hosts the names of local service members who died in the line of duty.
“I was chairman of the monument committee,” said Joe Mazzullo, who served in the 101st Airborne Division during Vietnam, “and the first words out of my mouth when we put that stone on that pedestal was, ‘I hope we don’t have to put another name ever again on this monument,’ but it didn’t come true.”
Lemm’s daughter, 17-year-old Brooke, sang the national anthem at the beginning of the ceremony, and closed it with a rendition of “God Bless America.”
At the end of the ceremony, attending veterans invited spectators to the VFW Hall for lunch.
