Memorial Day 2023: Danvers To Host Parade, Town Hall Ceremony

DANVERS, MA — A Memorial Day parade and ceremony in Danvers is part of a nearly 160-year tradition that pays tribute to military personnel who lost their lives in service to their country.

The parade will begin promptly at 9 a.m. with the ceremony to follow at about 10.

"Memorial Day is a day to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our
country," Danvers Director of Veterans Services Kelley Rayos-Teixeira said. "It's a time to reflect on the tragic loss of life and to appreciate the courage and sacrifices shown by our servicemen and women.

"The respect and admiration we give our fallen pay tribute to their memory and the lives they lived."

Augy Colarusso, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, was selected to be the 2023 Grand Marshal. He served in Japan and Korea and is the recipient of the Korean Service Medal.

The parade will follow the traditional route of previous years. Stops and placement of
wreaths will be at the Porter Cemetery on High Street and the Memorial Flagpole site in Danvers Square.

All Danvers veterans are invited to march in the parade in their civilian capacity. For those veterans unable to march, a trolley will be available at Town Hall and is handicapped accessible.

The Memorial Day Ceremony will take place in front of the Town Hall upon parade completion. The Danvers High School Marching Band and Chamber Singers will perform.

The guest speaker will be Jim Ciman, a Danvers firefighter, and veteran of the U.S. Navy Seabees, Naval Reserve, and Army National Guard, who also served in Operation Iraqi Freedom.

As the observance has changed over the years, many families also use Memorial Day as an occasion to visit Danvers cemeteries and leave flowers at the graves of family members, regardless of whether they served in the military.

The history of Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, dates back to 1868, when Gen. John A. Logan called for a day of remembrance to honor the Northern lives lost amid battle during the Civil War that had ended just a few years earlier, according to History.com.

As time passed, more and more people called it Memorial Day, and it became a federal holiday in 1971.

Waterloo, New York, is considered the birthplace of Memorial Day. The town's observance on May 5, 1866, predated Logan’s call for a day of remembrance. Local businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers and flags.

Until World War I, the holiday honored only those soldiers who died while fighting for the Union in the War, as Southern states honored their war dead on a separate day. After the 116,000-plus American deaths in World War I, the tradition changed to remember all who have died while serving in the military.

Every year, a national moment of remembrance is held at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day.

No matter where they are or what they're doing, Americans are asked to pause for one minute in
silence to remember military personnel who have given their lives in service to their country. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, the midday time was chosen because it’s a time when many Americans will be enjoying their freedoms on a national holiday.