Parade committee urges more veterans to march

During World War I, there was a famous U.S. Army recruiting poster with an image of Uncle Sam pointing his figure out and saying, “I Want You For U.S. Army.” Apparently, it was so successfully deployed then that it was used again to recruit soldiers during World War II.

In the spirit of that iconic poster, all veterans, reservists and active duty members from Brooklyn and Staten Island are encouraged to join one of the oldest Memorial Day marches in the nation, the 158th Brooklyn Memorial Day Parade, on Monday, May 26 at 11 a.m.

You don’t necessarily have to be affiliated with a veterans organization to participate. If you need a ride due to advanced age or a handicap, one will be waiting for you. You will be invited to ride aboard one of the five floats or vintage cars.

The boroughwide parade is sponsored by the United Military Veterans of Kings County. It is held in Bay Ridge along Third Avenue from 78th Street to Marine Avenue up to Fourth Avenue and over to John Paul Jones Park at 101st Street. In addition to several marching contingents and eight bands, Fleet Week sailors and Marines will participate.

In 1866, some villages and small towns held events where their residents placed flowers on the graves of Civil War soldiers for Decoration Day. However, no big city actually held a Decoration Day or Memorial Day Parade. Later, Congress and President Lyndon Johnson declared Waterloo, a small town in upstate New York, as the “birthplace” of Memorial Day. However, not for a Memorial Day parade. 

Brooklyn’s Memorial Day Parade was founded in 1867, when Brooklyn was an independent city and the third largest in the nation. It was originally organized by Brooklyn veterans from the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR). When the last Civil War veteran from the GAR died, the annual Brooklyn Memorial Day Parade continued under the auspices of the United Military Veterans of Kings County.

While Veterans Day on Nov. 11 and Armed Forces Day on May 17 salute our men and women in uniform, there is no “happy” Memorial Day Parade. It is always a solemn occasion to remember America’s fallen military heroes.

Right after the parade, there will be a memorial service in John Paul Jones Park, with wreath-layings, a 21-gun salute fired via Howitzer cannons by the Veterans Corps, and the playing of “Taps.”

And a final Memorial Day tribute: The National Moment of Remembrance Commission urges everyone across the nation to pause wherever they are at 3 p.m. for a minute of silence.