Bellport residents, children, and even their dogs lined up from Bellport Lane near Bell Street, all the way to Woodland Cemetery, to watch the Bellport Village Memorial Day parade on the morning of May 30, led by the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 8300.

Memorial Day is a holiday in the United States in which we honor the men and women who served in the military and risked their lives for the country.

The sounds of marching bands and fire truck sirens could be heard during the parade, as some groups who marched included the Bellport Middle School marching band, the Hagerman Fire Department, the Bellport Fire Department, the Brookhaven Fire Department, VFW Post 8300, and the South Country Ambulance.

Once at Woodland Cemetery, VFW Post 8300 held a ceremony to commemorate those who lost their lives for this country by having various groups place wreaths around the monument located in the cemetery.

“On this day forever consecrated to our heroic dead, we are here once again assembled to express sincere reverence. This monument represents the resting place of many departed comrades who served in all wars. Wherever the body of a comrade lies, there the ground is hallowed,” said Jim Vaughan, who served in Vietnam in 1969 in the U.S. Army and a member of VFW Post 8300. “Our presence here is in solemn commemoration of all these men and women, an expression of our tribute to their devotion of duty, to their courage and patriotism. By their services on land, unseen, and in the air, they have made us their debtors, for our flag still flies over a nation of free and proud people.”

Vaughan expressed the importance of Memorial Day to all who live in the United States. “Some people gave all their tomorrows so we could enjoy today,” he said.