Area communities will hold Memorial Day programs Monday | News

Local communities will remember those who gave their lives serving and protecting their country during Memorial Day programs Monday, May 29.

Here is what Ripon, Green Lake, Brandon, Fairwater and Rosendale have planned:

Ripon

The Ripon Memorial Day service will kick off at 9:30 a.m. at the Village Green, with a speech by Army veteran Nikki Davis.

Also set to speak during the ceremony are Ripon High School students Hayden Meeker-Durovy, Caroline Reable and Sam Krueger. They will read from “America’s Answer,” Abraham Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address” and “In Flanders Fields.”

Providing musical selections are the Ripon High School and Ripon Middle School bands, with Grace Retzlaff and Avery Sprader playing taps.

A parade then will begin at approximately 10 a.m. and will go down Watson Street to the Hillside Cemetery. Veterans who attend the ceremony may march in the parade.

A short program will take place at the cemetery. It will include wreath laying by the Girl Scouts, flag raising by the Boys Scouts and a 21-gun salute by the Ripon American Legion Honor Guard.

The program is hosted by the local Veterans of Foreign Wars and Ripon American Legion posts. The Poppy Princess for the American Legion this year is Autumn Lueck, while the VFW Poppy Princess is Taylor Kelm.

The rain site is the Ripon High School gymnasium. 

Green Lake 

The annual Memorial Day parade begins at 8:30 a.m. in downtown Green Lake.

A ceremony will then be held at the school featuring speakers and a performance by the band and choir.  Howard Stewart will serve as this year’s keynote speaker.

Following the school program, the parade will go to the Dartford Cemetery and Bluffton Cemetery for short ceremonies.

A traditional pancake breakfast will be held Sunday, May 28 from 7 to 11 a.m. at American Legion Post 306, 518 Water St. The event, sponsored by the Legion Auxiliary, will have indoor and outdoor seating.

Brandon & Fairwater

Mattox Henslin Post 378 will host programs in Brandon and Fairwater, with Commander Larry Beuthin explaining “The Reason for Memorial Day” and Carol Christionsen serving as the guest speaker.

Individuals should line up at 8:30 a.m. at Depot Park for the Brandon parade, which will begin at 9 and go to Brandon Park for ceremonies at the Veterans Memorial with the Laconia High School marching band.

The Bethel Reformed Church Quilt Ministry also will present quilts. In case of inclement weather, the ceremony will be held at the Brandon Fire Station.

The Fairwater program will begin at 10:30 a.m. with a ceremony at the bridge to honor veterans lost at seas. 

A ceremony at the Civic Center gymnasium will follow at 11, with the presentationt of a quilt and the Markesan Junior High Band providing music.

Rosendale  

Rosendale’s Memorial Day Ceremony will begin at 10 a.m. at Rosendale Intermediate School, 200 South Main St.

Weather permitting, a parade to the Veterans Memorial at the Rosendale Cemetery will follow the program,

Parking is available at the Rosendale Intermediate School and Tabbert’s Restaurant. 

A free-will offering will be available at the ceremony.