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- Bill Harpold, president of the Belpre Area Veterans, hosted the Belpre Memorial Day ceremony at Leavitt Funeral Home in Belpre in 2021. (File Photo)
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- Romel Henderson, with American Legion Post 15, stood before a monument at City Park following the Memorial Day ceremony in 2021. (File Photo)
Romel Henderson, with American Legion Post 15, stood before a monument at City Park following the Memorial Day ceremony in 2021. (File Photo)
PARKERSBURG — Memorial Day programs organized by differing veterans organizations, funeral homes and service groups will be held Memorial Day Weekend across the Mid-Ohio Valley.
In addition to ceremonies and parades, there will also be a couple of special events.
* On Saturday, MOV Tactical will hold its first Ruck N’ Run race at City Park in Parkersburg. The ruck run/walk will begin with registration at 7:30 a.m. with the race to begin at 9 a.m. The registration fee is $30 at MOV Tactical, 409 32nd St., Vienna, or on the day of the race at the City Park Pavilion. More information is available by calling 304-699-9011, 304-480-1401 or 681-588-0144. All proceeds will benefit Disabled American Vets Chapter 52 Pioneer City.
* On Monday, a Memorial Day Picnic organized by DAV Pioneer Chapter 52 will be 1-4 p.m. at 835 DAV Road in Whipple. The event is open to the public and will include free music, food and drinks along with a raffle.
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Bill Harpold, president of the Belpre Area Veterans, hosted the Belpre Memorial Day ceremony at Leavitt Funeral Home in Belpre in 2021. (File Photo)
Elsewhere in the Mid-Ohio Valley, the Memorial Day services and parades will be spread out over the weekend, with one each on Saturday and Sunday and the rest scheduled for Monday.
* On Saturday, Sunset Memory Gardens on West Virginia 95 in south Parkersburg will hold its annual Memorial Day Ceremony.
This year’s program will be 9 a.m. Saturday at the Veterans Wall at the front of the cemetery with a rifle salute, flag folding ceremony and other activities. The cemetery’s Avenue of Flags will be on display through the weekend. Sunset will also be hosting a food drive from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday for Disabled American Veterans Chapter 32 to benefit area veterans.
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* On Sunday, a ceremony will be 2 p.m. at Ravenswood Cemetery. It will feature speakers and county and city officials along with representatives from law enforcement agencies and local veterans groups as special guests at the ceremony.
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* In Belpre, the annual Memorial Day program will be 11 a.m. Monday at Leavitt Funeral Home in Belpre, at the flagpole and veterans memorial dedicated in 2007 by the funeral home to veterans who have received services there.
The event is organized by Leavitt Funeral Home and the Belpre Veterans Association. The program will feature speakers, a rifle salute and the laying of a wreath and the playing of “Taps” during the ceremony. Light refreshments will be served at the funeral home.
* The Beverly-Waterford parade will be 9 a.m. Monday with lineup at Fort Frye High School and services at Beverly Cemetery, Waterford Bridge and Waterford Cemetery. The parade is sponsored by the American Legion Post 389. The speaker will be Washington County Commissioner James Booth. Post 389 will host a breakfast following the parade and ceremonies.
* In Marietta, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5108 will again sponsor the early morning parade from Harmar Elementary School to Harmar Cemetery with lineup at 7:30 a.m., the parade will start at 8 a.m.
American Legion Post 64 will conduct the annual downtown Marietta parade. Lineup begins at 9 a.m. on Wooster Street and the parade begins at 10 a.m. following Wooster Street and Fifth Street with a “pass and review” at Mound Cemetery. It will conclude on Putnam Street Bridge for a Memorial Day Ceremony with the Marietta Noon Lions and the Bridge of Heroes Dedication.
A project of Marietta Noon Lions, Bridge of Heroes seeks to honor the community’s military service members and veterans. During the weeks of Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Veterans Day, the Putnam Street Bridge will be lined with more than 100 flags dedicated to the brave men and women who have served the country.
Following the parades, there will be lunch served at the American Legion and VFW posts in Marietta.
* In Parkersburg, American Legion Post 15 will begin its day with a ceremony at 9 a.m. Monday at the post headquarters at 2505 Ohio Ave. in the traffic circle.
A full Memorial Day service organized by Post 15 will follow at 10 a.m. Monday at City Park at the veterans plaza next to the pond. There will be posting of the colors, speakers, “Taps,” a rifle salute and the laying of a wreath. The names of area veterans who have died since the last Memorial Day will be read.
* In Williamstown, American Legion Post 159 will be gathering at Tomlinson Park at 9 a.m. Monday for the annual parade. The parade will depart at 9:30 a.m. to the Riverview Cemetery on Waverly Road where the community will honor the deceased veterans by laying of the wreath by the Ladies Auxiliary and a rifle salute by the Color Guard along with “Taps.” Mayor Paul Jordan will be the guest speaker. A flag disposal ceremony and lunch will follow at the post.
* In Ripley, the Jackson County Veterans Memorial Day Service will be 11 a.m. Monday on the Jackson County Courthouse lawn. There will be speakers, including Jackson County Commissioner Mike Randolph, a Vietnam veteran, the posting of the colors, the national anthem, a rifle ceremony, wreath-laying and other activities.
Wayne Towner can be reached at wtowner@newsandsentinel.com
