Memorial Day parade at 9:30 with service to follow
The Benson area’s Memorial Day service is set for Monday, May 29, at the Benson City Cemetery. It will begin with a parade at 9:30 a.m. along the traditional route starting at the Junior High School, traveling south on 13th Street North to Idaho Avenue on the north side of Roosevelt Park, then back north on 14th Street North. The band will then proceed to the Benson City Cemetery for the service, which starts following the parade.
Memorial Day celebrates the sacrifice of those who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. It began as Decoration Day after the American Civil War and became an official federal holiday in 1971.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion will lead the memorial ceremony at the Benson Cemetery. Members of the Minnesota National Guard, city dignitaries, the Benson High School and Junior High Bands, the BHS Voice of Democracy winner and Boy’s State winner will all gather for music, brief addresses and military honors.
The red poppy flower, sometimes called the Remembrance Poppy, was chosen as the symbol used in tribute to those who died while serving their country. The color representation of the flower is red for shed blood, black for the mourning of loved ones, and green for future prosperity to follow the war. The individual poppy should also be worn over your heart.
The VFW Buddy Poppy is assembled by disabled and needy veterans in VA hospitals, and the programs provide compensation to those who assemble the poppies, and financial assistance in maintaining state and local veteran rehabilitation and service programs.
The VFW Auxiliary Benson Post 1403 has been selling the poppies in the community this past week.
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Pictured: Helen Hollingsworth, escorted by Ben Hess, lays a wreath on the Benson City Cemetery War Veterans Memorial on Memorial Day in 2016.
