ELMHURST, IL, May 17, 2011 — Led by Grand Marshal Leonard F. Prescott, a decorated Petty Officer in the United States Navy, nearly 90 entries will march in Elmhurst’s 94th Annual Memorial Day Parade through downtown Elmhurst on Monday, May 28, starting at 9:30 a.m.
Following the parade, a Military Ceremony will be conducted at the Veterans Memorial in Wilder Park at around 11 a.m.
The 2012 Parade is presented by the Elmhurst Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Elmhurst American Legion T.H.B. Post 187, Elmhurst Veterans of Foreign Wars Villa Park Post 2801 and the City of Elmhurst. Members of the Kiwanis Club of Elmhurst will again serve as Parade Marshals, and also will march carrying their giant U.S. flag. Fellow Kiwanians Ralph P. Pechanio, Chairman of the Elmhurst Veterans Memorial Commission, and John R. Quigley, President & CEO of the Elmhurst Chamber, are the Parade Co-Chairs, since 1996 and 2000, respectively.
“Our parade is a tribute to all those men and women who have so bravely put their lives on the line to defend individual freedoms here in this greatest of nations and around the world,” said Quigley. “With the Iraq War at an end, this year’s parade will have added significance.”
This year’s entries include five color guards, retired military officers from the United States Air Force, Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard, members of American Legion Post 187 and VFW Post 2801, costumed Civil War re-enactors and military vehicles.
For the second year in a row, the lead color guard will feature members of the Elmhurst Police and Fire Departments, American Legion and VFW.
The parade also will feature vehicles representing four fire departments (Elmhurst, Northlake, Oakbrook Terrace and Oak Brook), 13 scouting groups and 12 musical/dance entries, along with political leaders at the federal, state and local levels.
A total of 10 cub scout packs, two boy scout troops and one combined group of girls scouts will carry commemorative war banners.
Elmhurst Mayor Peter “Pete” DiCianni and members of the Elmhurst City Council will head a contingent of political leaders that includes U.S. Representative Joe Walsh and State Representatives Chris Nybo and Patty Bellock, all Republicans, along with the Addison Township Democratic Organization.
Rounding out the parade’s musical/dance groups are the Antioch Brass Quintet, Boliviamanta Dance Ensemble, Carver Military Academy Drill Team and Drum Corps, Chicago Highlanders Pipes and Drums, Chicago Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Music
Performing Arts Drumline, Patton Academy (Farragut High School) JROTC Drill and Drums Team, and Royal Airs Drum and Bugle Corps.
The parade will step off at 9:30 a.m. from York Road and Third Street, and concludes with a Military Ceremony at the Veterans Memorial in Wilder Park. Starting from Third Street, the parade will head south on York Street to Second Street, veer east along Robert Palmer Drive through the underpass and west back to York Street, south on York Street to Church Street, west on Church Street to Prospect Avenue and north on Prospect Avenue past the Veterans Memorial.
POST-PARADE MEMORIAL
The Military Ceremony at the Elmhurst Veterans Memorial will feature inspirational speeches by Elmhurst Mayor Peter “Pete” DiCianni and others, the laying of wreaths by military personnel and civilians, and a traditional Three-Round Volley.
Patriotic music will be performed by the Antioch Brass Quintet and bagpiper Brian Costello of the Shannon Rovers, and sung by the Men of Spirito! and soloist Anne Quigley.
The names of Elmhurst area veterans who passed away since Veterans Day 2011 will be read aloud in remembrance, from the lists provided by Ahlgrim Funeral Home, Gibbons Funeral Home and Pedersen-Ryberg Mortuary.
American Legion Post 187 has placed rows of white crosses adjacent to the Veterans Memorial with the names of Elmhurst residents killed during World War I, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam, the Persian Gulf War, and Afghanistan and Iraq.
For the third year in row, an Always Remember sign commemorating the names of the deceased Memorial Day Parade Grand Marshals has been erected adjacent to the crosses. The sign was manufactured by Vital Signs USA, with a donation by Don Meyers.
The Veterans Memorial was dedicated in 1993 through the efforts of VFW Post 2048, American Legion Post 187 and Ralph Pechanio, 1992 President (now Chairman) of the Chamber’s Board of Directors. Their fund-raising campaign generated more than $100,000 to build the memorial.
Applications to have a deceased veteran honored at the Veterans Memorial are available at Elmhurst City Hall, 209 North York Street, or by calling (630) 530-3010.
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