More than 100 people gathered near Soldiers Row at Riverview Cemetery on the north side of Seymour on Monday morning to remember those who paid the ultimate sacrifice while serving their country.
The annual Memorial Day service included singing, prayer, messages from Jack Schrader with Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1925 in Seymour and Vietnam veteran Gary Dyer, the laying of wreaths and Richie Keith played “Amazing Grace” on the bagpipes.
Members of a combined honor guard from American Legion Post 89 and VFW Post 1925 fired a 21-gun salute and “Taps” was played at the end of the ceremony.
Ileana Munoz, 26, is a VFW member and the only female member of the honor guard, which is looking for more members.
“Memorial Day is one of my favorite holidays because I get to remember those we’ve lost over the years,” Munoz said. “I also get to hear these awesome people tell stories about those they’ve served with, and in their generation, it hits more because they have people who are buried here.”
Daniel Nourse, commander of American Legion Post 89, said he has helped conduct the service for several years now.
“The service is a time to recognize those who died serving and gave their life for us,” he said. “This is a way we can remember them and pay tribute.”
Schrader said the American flags at the cemetery represent the resting places of the many departed veterans who served in all wars.
“Our presence here on Memorial Day is in commemoration to all of these men and women, and we express our tribute to their devotion to duty, their courage, their patriotism and their services on land, sea and in the air that have made us a free people,” Schrader said.
Dyer said it was an honor and a privilege for him to speak on behalf of their precious brothers and sisters who have paid the ultimate sacrifice.
Freetown resident Jerry Goble and his wife, Cathy, attended the service. Jerry is a veteran and served in Vietnam for 18 months as a military policeman.
“I was drafted in 1965 and a bunch of my friends went with me at the same time, too, and this memorial service, after what I saw over there, means a lot,” he said. “My dad was in the U.S. Army and was supposed to be in D-Day (invasion of Europe on June 6, 1944) on the beach, but their ship broke down and he was 24 hours late, and Cathy’s dad was in the U.S. Navy.”
Cathy said she and her husband have attended the Memorial Day event for several years and like to see the number of veterans in attendance. She believes everyone who serves should be there for the service.
Besides Munoz, other members of the younger generation played an important part of the memorial service, too.
Brothers Owen Chandler, 20, Sam Chandler, 17, and Liam Chandler, 15, are in Boy Scout Troop 529. Liam and Sam played “Taps” on their trumpets.
Owen said he had been playing the part for the last eight years, but this year, he passed the torch to his younger brother, Liam.
“This is the first time I’ve done this, so I was a little nervous at first,” Liam said.
Sam said he has been playing trumpet for about six years, and their grandfather, Rick Roberts, is part of the local honor guard and helped them have the opportunity to be part of the Memorial Day service.
Turner Mellencamp, 9, also participated in the service as a member of the Seymour Young Marines. The community-based program focuses on teaching the values of leadership, teamwork, honoring veterans, history, community service, self-discipline and more.
Mellencamp said he enjoyed taking part in the service and helping place flags on soldiers’ gravesites ahead of Memorial Day weekend. He was interested in joining the Young Marines because both of his uncles were in the military.
He said Memorial Day feels much different since he joined the Young Marines because he has learned more about the sacrifices that have been made.
“When you learn about some of the stuff people have had to do, it changes how you think about it,” he said. “When you learn more about the wars, it also tells you about what they had to go through.”