Community Corner
VIDEO: Veterans Appreciation Day Parade Set For June Fourth
Hundreds of participants will march in Swampscott on Saturday, June 4, to recognize service men and women, past and present, in the Veterans Appreciation Day Parade and field events at the high school.
A parade will be held in Swampscott on June 4, beginning at 10 a.m. to honor Swampscott’s veterans and vets from all over the United States.
“It’s a big event,” Jim Schultz said. “We’ve been planning it for several years, it’s important for people to never forget those that have served our country, and those that are currently in theater serving their country across the globe.”
Schultz is the Veterans Services Officer in town, and is also a member of the Swampscott Police Department.
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“We have over two thousand people from Swamspcott who are currently in the armed forces or who have answered the country’s call to serve in the past, and it’s important to recognize them, especially those people, who have made the ultimate sacrifice and their families,” Schultz said.
The parade will honor those past and present from the town that have served in the military and also honor Gold Star families, recognizing service men and women who have given their lives in service to the nation.
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There will be a fly-over by military aircraft and a visit from a Black Hawk helicopter during the ceremonies that start on Saturday, June 4, with the start of the parade at Phillips Park.
The marchers will head down Humphrey Street towards Lynn, down Burrill Street, past the fire station and police station, take a right on Essex Street with the marchers and participants ending up at Swampscott High School.
At the end point at the high school there will be interactive kiosks, a static display, living history exhibitions, and music, featuring a concert by the Middlesex County Volunteer Fife and Drums, the Campbell Highlanders Pipes and Drum corps and many others, from all branches of the U. S. military.
The parade and activities at the high school will include historical enactors and veterans, including, those from the present day Army, Air Force, Marines, Navy, and Coast Guard as well as representatives from the police, fire and sheriff’s departments from all over the Bay State, and the country.
“Members of the Connecticut Governor’s Foot Guard are just one of the groups that will be marching on June fourth in town,” Schultz said. “The first part of the parade will focus on the military from a historical standpoint, including several groups of Revolutionary War re-enactors, a mounted unit representing the War of 1812, the Civil War, World War One, World War Two and conflicts up to, and including, the present day operations in Iraq, Libya and Afghanistan."
Here are just a few of the groups participating in Swampscott’s Veterans Appreciation Day Parade and Field Events: the Boston Crusaders, the Bridgewater Brass Band, the Massachusetts State Police Fife and Drum Corps, the Irish Column Fife and Drums Corps, a U. S. Army Chaffee Tank, the Fifth Massachusetts Battery, the U. S. Air Force Rock Band, the 28th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry and many others set to march and perform.
“This is a great opportunity for people in town to recognize our current and veteran military personnel as well as our local Gold Star families who have paid the ultimate price in service to this country,” Schultz said.
“This is a day to celebrate what this country stands for and the people who have served their country to make it that way,” Schultz said.
The parade starts on Humphrey Street near Phillips Park at 10 a.m. It will wind its way down Humphrey to Burrill Street, onto Essex Street and ending at Swampscott High School, with many activities scheduled for the high school at the conclusion of the parade.
“We hope that people will be along the parade route to cheer our service men and women, and then come to the events at the high school,” Schultz said. “We’ve put a lot of work and a lot of time into the Veterans Appreciation Parade and we hope that people will come out and support the parade, the marchers and the performers.”
If you would like to show your support for the veterans, you can find out more information about the parade, and the organizers and show your support by checking out their Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=124881270926111.
