Fox Valley Notes: Area communities plan Memorial Day ceremonies

Local communities will observe Memorial Day on May 27 with a variety of ceremonies. Here’s a summary of some of the planned activities. All the ceremonies are open to the public.

Aurora

The City of Aurora’s Memorial Day observation will begin with a patriotic ceremony at 11:15 a.m. at the David L. Pierce Art and History Center, 20 E. Downer Pl. The city’s annual parade will begin at noon at Benton and River streets. Broadway Avenue will be closed at noon for the parade. For more information about the parade, call the City of Aurora at 630-256-3370 or go to www.aurora-il.org.

Batavia

Batavia VFW Post 1197 will conduct its annual Memorial Day observation at 10 a.m. at the Hangar, 645 S. River St., Batavia. Army Chief Warrant Officer Ty Simmons will be the guest speaker at the ceremony. For more information about ceremony, call the VFW at 630-879-9630, or visit www.bataviavfw.org.

Geneva

The Color Guard from American Legion Fox River-Geneva Post 75 will present rifle salutes starting at 6 a.m. at the city’s East Side Cemetery before moving to the State Street bridge, the Kane County Veterans Memorial, and the Geneva Township Building. The post also will conduct a parade at 10 a.m. that will start near the train station in downtown Geneva and march north on Third Street to the city’s West Side Cemetery on Stevens Street. A service will be conducted at the cemetery. For more information, call the American Legion post at 630-232-2171.

Also in Geneva, the Kane County Veterans Assistance Commission will conduct a ceremony at 3 p.m. at the Kane County Veterans Memorial, 719 S. Batavia Ave., Geneva. Doc Sheehan, an Air Force veteran who served in Vietnam, will be the guest speaker at the event.

Maple Park

Members of Maple Park American Legion Post 312 will observe Memorial Day with ceremonies at six local cemeteries. During the ceremonies, post members will place American flags on the graves of service members at each of the cemeteries, the post chaplain will offer a prayer and the post rifle squad will fire three volleys before the playing of taps. 

The day’s ceremonies will begin at 9:15 a.m. at Pierce Cemetery, Pritchard and Owens roads in Troxel. Ceremonies also will be conducted at St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery, Gardner Methodist Cemetery, the Van Vlak Cemetery, Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery, and South Burlington Cemetery. 

Observations also will include a flag ceremony at 10:50 a.m. at the American Legion Post, 203 Main St., Maple Park. The ceremony will include the Kaneland Middle School Band and comments from State Rep. Robert Pritchard (R-Hinckley). For more information, call the post at 815-827-3536, or visit www.mapleparklegion.org.

St. Charles

The City’s Memorial Day observation will begin with a flag raising ceremony at 6 a.m. at the Baker Community Center, 101 S. Second St. Cemetery ceremonies will be conducted beginning at 6:30 a.m. at South Cemetery on Seventh Street and will continue at North Cemetery, before concluding at Union Cemetery. A parade will begin at 10 a.m. at Sixth and Main streets. A memorial service will be conducted immediately after the parade at Freedom Shrine, located near the St. Charles Police Department, 211 N. Riverside Ave. For more information about the City’s Memorial Day plans, go to www.stcharlesil.gov/news/2013/05/10/st-charles-memorial-day-services.