Memorial Day.  What does it mean? I googled it. 

A day on which those who died in active military service are remembered, traditionally observed on May 30 but now officially observed on the last Monday in May.

We were wondering on "WBCK’s Saturday Live" about the lack of a Memorial Day Parade in Battle Creek?   When was the last time Battle Creek had a Memorial Day Parade?

Callers to the show remembered the last one sometime in the early 80’s.  One caller speculated that the parades stopped due to a lack of interest, but I’ve seen thousands line up for parades in Battle Creek, and this is a town that has always valued and honored all things military.  We’re a pretty big military town.   Another caller pointed out that the parades stopped around the time that Fort Custer received the official designation as a National Cemetary.  That was 1981.   Perhaps the focus just moved there.  Saturday, volunteers will be decorating graves at the cemetery to prepare for Sunday’s  2pm Fort Custer Memorial Day Observance.

  •  Fort Custer Memorial Day Observance
  •  Sunday May 28, 2017 at 2pm
  •  Patriot Legion Riders, Civil Air Patrol “The Hooligans” fly over, 110th Attack Color Guard, Cereal City Concert Band,  vocalist Don Plane and Jonathon Barnes.  Fort Custer Wednesday Honor Guard .
  • Keynote speaker: Command Chief Master Sgt. Tony Whitehead, from Selfridge Air National Guard Base

Other area ceremonies:

Climax: Climax Memorial Day/Founder's Day Car Show and Parade 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. includes 10 a.m. parade from beginning at Climax-Scotts High School to the Prairie Home Cemetery. Also includes the annual Run to Climax 7K run and 2-mile walk at 8:15 a.m.

Gull Lake/Richland: 11 a.m. program at Prairie Home Cemetery.

Hickory Corners:  Hickory Corners' activities include a pancake breakfast at the fire department 7-9:30 a.m., 10 a.m. sharp parade of 125 to 150 participants from Cadwallader Park to Memorial Day ceremony at East Hickory Corners Cemetery that could include a fly-over by the Civil Air Patrol (weather permitting), chicken barbecue after the services at the Simmonds-Williams American Legion Post 484 and a "touch the truck" event across from the cemetery to raise funds for the park improvements.

Area Parades:

Hastings – 10:30am Route will be on N. Broadway St.

Marshall – 10:00am Starts at Veteran’s memorial wall to Oakridge Cemetery.

Plainwell – 11:00am – Along M-89 between downtown to Hillside Cemetery

Kalamazoo- Annual Memorial Day Parade in Downtown Kalamazoo begins downtown on Michigan Avenue and ends on Gull Road in front of the Riverside Cemetery.

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