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Overcast Remembering our heroes
Village honors those who died for their country at Memorial Day service
The sky was blue and the sun was shining as Rockville Centre honored the fallen at the Memorial Day Parade on Monday.
Hundreds of residents lined Long Beach Road as the parade made its way from South Side High School to the Recreation Center. Village firefighters, police officers, Boy and Girl Scouts and Little League teams all marched. The parade was followed by a ceremony at Veterans Park, next to the Rec Center.
Parade Grand Marshal Robert Kipp, an Army captain who served in Iraq, recalled the parades of his childhood. “I specifically remember being fixated on the shiny medals and colorful ribbons that adorned the men and women who served,” he told the crowd. “The significance of those decorations were lost on my younger self. It wasn’t long before I learned that not everyone who earned such medals had the luxury of wearing them.”
Kipp added that people should ask themselves how they could honor and remember veterans who lost their lives. “There’s no one right answer,” he said. “But it begins with events like this. Coming together as families, as a community, we can honor our fallen brothers and sisters. Set aside time in your daily routine to appreciate all the freedom we have.”
He noted the millions of soldiers who have served and the more than 1 million who did not return home. “Memorial Day is a day of remembrance, but let’s not make it a day of mourning,” Kipp said. “Remember that the freedom that we enjoy today would not have been possible without those who made the ultimate sacrifice.”
Mayor Francis X. Murray spoke as well, and pointed out that the monuments at Veterans Park honored Rockville Centre residents who died in four wars — World Wars I and II, Korea and Vietnam. “There are 105 names in all,” he said. “And this is the 11th Memorial Day that we remember and honor Marine 1st Lt. Ronald Winchester … who became the first Rockville Centre resident killed in the Iraq War.”
State Assemblyman Brian Curran spoke about the importance of maintaining the ideals of freedom and liberty and honoring the sacrifices of veterans. The South Side Middle School band played a medley of patriotic songs.
The ceremony ended with local organizations placing wreaths in honor of the village’s fallen, and a 21-gun salute. Middle School band member Matthew Seplowe played taps, and the South Side High School Chamber Singers performed “God Bless America.”
Joe Scarola, commander of American Legion Post 303, asked that people take a moment to remember the families of veterans, veterans with physical and mental wounds and police and fire departments. “We sometimes take them for granted,” he said, “until we need them.”
