A day to remember those who have fallen

American Legion Post 111 members and Legion Riders finished their Memorial Day honors at Newton Union Cemetery Monday morning in honor of those who have lost their lives in service.

The coronavirus pandemic made Memorial Day look a little different with normal programs and ceremonies that usually take place not held this year. Instead, people could be seen lining the roads of Newton Union Cemetery to watch the honors from a safe distance.

“We had every intention of doing this regardless of weather or circumstances. We are here to honor our veterans and our fallen ... We were going to do whatever we had to do to meet the requirements to do so,” American Legion Post 111 Commander Jerry Nelson said.

Even though social distancing measures are ever present in everyone’s mind, those who participated in the honors for Memorial Day didn’t have to be poked or prodded to come out to honor the fallen service members.

“The group wants to be here under these trying and difficult situations we are in. We could ask anybody to do anything and I think we would figure out a way to do it. We look forward to it,” American Legion Post 111 adjutant Wesley Justus said.

Even though people were unable to attend the ceremony in person, they were able to follow along during a live stream.

“It was streaming on our Facebook page and our Facebook page is part of the history because it keeps all the pictures all of the videos,” American Legion Post 111 historian Mady McKim said.

The turnout included those who were participating in the honors as well as people watching from their cars or standing a safe distance within the cemetery. A global pandemic couldn’t keep people from honoring the fallen this Memorial Day.

“I think it was wonderful and the ceremony itself is just spectacular the people that came were wonderful, too,” American Legion Post 111 Charlotte Ross said.

Memorial Day and the weekend that goes with it tends to allow for people to spend time together. It is also a time to reflect and remember those who have fallen, their families and the sacrifices they made.

“This is the day we celebrate our fallen. These are the folks that fell or have fallen since returning and if you don’t thank those folks, we don’t honor those folks those memories go away and we don’t want that,” Nelson said.

Contact Dustin Teays at 641-792-3121 ext. 6533 or dteays@newtondailynews.com