The Wilton Memorial Day volunteer parade committee is hard at work planning the 2023 parade which is planned for Monday, May 29 at 10 a.m. The committee chair is Jim Newton and this year’s theme will be “Honor Their Sacrifice.” The parade and parade committee are independent of the town and receive no municipal funds, relying on private donations to pay for parade expenses like bagpipers, porta-johns, wreaths, and flags.
Donations can be made to Memorial Day Fund, P.O. Box 75, Wilton, CT 06897.
Memorial Day activities start with the Pancake Breakfast, sponsored by the Wilton Kiwanis Club, and held at the Wilton Congregational Church. The events end with the Memorial Service at Hillside Cemetery.
This year’s keynote speaker will be Vietnam Veteran Jim Kohler, and the parade Grand Marshal will be Bayden “Bud” Taylor, a Navy veteran.
The committee has issued the call for parade participants. Any groups interested in marching in the parade should contact Coleen Amero via email to receive registration forms. Participants need to provide proof of insurance in order to march and registration forms are due by May 19.
American Legion Post 86 will place flags on the graves of veterans in all Wilton Cemeteries. Contact Post 86 at 112 Old Ridgefield Rd. to provide information on any veterans whose graves do not have a flag. In addition, email Jeff Turner about any Wilton veterans who have passed away since Memorial Day 2022.
Committee organizers remind the community that Memorial Day is a day to remember service members who have passed on, whether in service or afterward. They emphasize that it is a day to remember rather than celebrate.