Chester Memorial Day services at Walton Engine and Hose
By Ginny Privitar
CHESTER — It was pouring rain when the community gathered for the Memorial Day Services at the Walton Engine and Hose Co. in Chester. Yet they came out in force to attend the American Legion’s Memorial Day services.
Main St., Academy Ave., and High St. were adorned with American flags along the walkways, many of them carrying a tag with the name of a serviceman or -woman, or just a friend who was remembered.
Ed Johnson, Commander of American Legion Orange Blossom Post 1167, said during his remarks: “May the ceremonies of today deepen our reverence for our departed friends and comrades. Let us resolve by word and deed, to emphasize the courage of duty, of patriotism.”
The rain had stopped, happily, when the honor guard gave the gun salute and veterans laid the wreath at the war memorial to honor our fallen heroes.
One current member of the armed forces, Sgt. 1 Class John Hand, U.S. Army, was present and resplendent in full dress uniform, with a chestful of medals. His mother, Chester resident Eileen Hand, sat proudly in the audience with another son, Bill.
“Me and my brothers — I’m here with my brother Bill — we’ve been coming here since we were very little," John Hand said. "It was important to our father to remember the people that he served with in Vietnam who didn’t come home. It’s just important for me to come out and continue that tradition and it’s important that this community always has come out and supported its veterans and just took a day to remember those veterans who are no longer with us.”
Chester Fire Chief Mark Thomas said, “This is a great day, obviously, to reflect on those who have served and paid the ultimate sacrifice for our country. In true Chester tradition, [the event is] well attended by the local community. We’re proud to be part of this as the fire department; we’ve have many relatives and local folks, in the past, whose names are on that list of ultimate sacrifice, so Memorial Day is a great time for us to reflect and think of those folks and what they’ve done for all of us.”