Memorial Day 500 recognizes Navy, 4 vets

By Mary Grzebieniak

Veterans of the USS Intrepid will have a chance to win a trip to New York City for the rededication of the ship.

MERCER, Pa. — The 2008 Memorial Day 500, an annual daylong Memorial Day observance, will honor four area veterans and feature a “Flotilla of Ships” in the parade in events set for May 26.

The day will begin at 9:30 a.m. with a military concert performance by the 28th Keystone Division Pennsylvania Army National Guard Band at the bandstand on the grounds of the Mercer County Courthouse.

The 28th is the oldest division in the Armed Forces and the most deployed Guard in the nation. The band earned distinction during the Battle of the Bulge and has performed before presidents, governors and foreign heads of state.

While the band plays, veterans are invited to gather on the north side of the courthouse where a reception will take place. Among the prize drawings is a trip for two to New York City for USS Intrepid veterans to attend the Intrepid’s rededication on Veterans Day.

Two Greenville men who were original Intrepid crew members, Dick Kennedy and Don Bee, will be available to talk with anyone who wishes to do so.

At 11 a.m. the parade will begin, this year recognizing the Navy and highlighting the USS Intrepid. Participating will be five bands, an all-Navy color guard, and the 2008 honorees. They include three living veterans, Rich Craig, Ralph Hudspeth, John Blank, and one deceased honoree, James Bailey.

The parade also features a flotilla of ships, which will include a billboard-sized picture of the USS Intrepid; two 22-foot representations made by Judy King of Fredonia of a destroyer and an amphibious assault ship; and a replica of the USS Nautilus replica from the Navy’s Requin Base in Pittsburgh.

At noon, a memorial salute observance will take place at the Citizens Cemetery at the foot of Pitt Street. The message will be given by Ray Stone of New York City, who is one of the original 300 sailors who sailed on the Intrepid in 1943. He is on the board of directors of the USS Intrepid Association and author of “My Ship, The USS Intrepid,” which is available from www.amazon.com.

Any changes in plans due to inclement weather will be decided at 8 a.m. and posted near the courthouse bandstand. The event will be delayed a half-hour if there are storms between 9 and 10 a.m. If there are dangerous storms all morning, there will be a memorial salute only at the high school gymnasium.

For more information, contact the event organizers, Mark and Linda Brown, at (724) 662-2786 or at their e-mail address, parade500@yahoo.com, or going to the Web site www.mercermemorialday500.homestead.com.