America’s heroes honored at events around the country for Memorial Day weekend

Every year on the last Monday of May, America honors those who have fallen while serving in the armed forces of the United States. Memorial Day events will be held around the country throughout the long weekend as a tribute those who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving their country.

The National Memorial Day Parade will be held in Washington, D.C., at 2 p.m. on Monday. Traveling down Constitution Ave., the annual parade features a moving timeline, mapping America’s military history, from the American Revolution to the conflicts of today. The parade is the largest Memorial Day celebration in the country, anticipating an audience in the hundreds of thousands. It will also feature Memorial Day parade traditions that date back to the holiday’s earliest parades, which we held just after the Civil War. The parade route begins on Constitution Ave. at 7th St. N.W. where it then travels west to its endpoint at 17th St. N.W., just past the White House Ellipse and the Washington Monument. The event is free and open to the public.

Chicago will host its Memorial Day Parade and Wreath Laying Ceremony on Saturday beginning at 11 a.m. at Daley Plaza. Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Robert S. Walsh will serve as the parade’s grand marshal. Walsh is the commander of Marine Corps Combat Development Command and Deputy Commandant, Combat Development and Integration. The parade will follow the wreath laying ceremony, stepping off at noon and proceeding south on State St., from Lake St. to Van Buren St. Chicago will also host its 21st Annual Ceremony and Dedication of the Gen. John A. Logan Monument. The Memorial Day ceremony will feature wreath laying and monument rededication, commemorating those who died serving the country. Music will begin at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, with the wreath laying ceremony starting at 11. The monument is located at S. Michigan Ave. and E. 9th St., and the ceremony is free and open to the public. The Chicago Cultural Mile Association will host a Memorial Day luncheon following the ceremony at the Crystal Ballroom at the Blackstone Hotel.

The Big Apple hosts multiple annual Memorial Day parades in each of the city’s five boroughs. In Queens, the 90th Annual Little Neck-Douglaston Memorial Day Parade is known to be the largest in New York. The parade begins at 2 p.m. at Jayson Ave. and Northern Blvd., ending at Divine Wisdom Catholic Academy parking lot at Alameda Ave. and Northern Blvd. Following the parade, the U.S. Air Force Band and The Blue Aces will perform at the closing ceremony. In Brooklyn, the 150th Annual King’s County Memorial Day Parade will be held at 11:00 a.m.. The parade route stetches from 78th St. and Third Ave., along Third Ave. to Marine Ave., up to Fourth Ave. and over to John Paul Jones Park on 101st St. and Fourth Ave. Both events, in addition to several others in the city, are free and open to the public. The Navy’s Fleet Week is also underway in New York, continuing throughout Memorial Day weekend, ending on Tuesday.

On the West Coast, the Mount Soledad’s Memorial Day Ceremony near San Diego is a unique service that honors veterans and Gold Star families. There will be a variety of performances including the United States Marine Corps Band and the Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego Color Guard. The San Diego Performance Formation Team, led by John "Flipper" Flippen, will perform a flyover at the ceremony, executing the traditional missing man formation. The keynote speaker this year will be Cpt. Howard C. Warner III, the commanding officer of Naval Base Point Loma, and the master of ceremonies will be radio and television personality Brett Winterble. The ceremony will run from 2 to 3 p.m. Monday and will be held at the Mount Soledad National Veterans Memorial in La Jolla, California.