Braidwood pays respect to military on Memorial Day

Sunny skies and pleasant temperatures made for a picture perfect Monday morning as nearly 200 folks came out to mark Memorial Day at the Reed Township Veterans Memorial in Braidwood.

The annual Memorial Day ceremony and laying of a wreath at the memorial brought out residents and local dignitaries, paying their respect to those who paid the ultimate price while  defending our country.

Will County Executive Larry Walsh spoke to the crowd, noting the importance of having respect for the members of the military.

“The communities, the villages that put together a [Memorial Day] programs, whether big or small, the issue is, they remember,” Walsh said. “They remember those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, those who fought to protect our rights and our privileges and our freedom that we enjoy today.”

Will County Dist. 6 Rep. Don Gould spoke of the important role the community has when it comes to teaching the next generation about the sacrifices made by those who have fought and died in the protection of the United States.

“Memorial Day is a day of remembrance and reflection,” Gould said. “As we lay wreaths at memorials in cities and towns, and flowers at the graves of our fallen Americans, with that reflection comes an obligation to all of us. The obligation to inform and educate our youth about the sacrifices made by the men and women of our armed forces, so that we could live in freedom. A grateful nation must remember its history.”

The Reed-Custer bands played patriotic music for the gathered crowd, while members of the RCHS Madrigal Choir sang the National Anthem and America the Beautiful.

The annual event was organized by the Braidwood American Legion Koca Post 39, with help from the City of Braidwood, the Braidwood Area Historical Society, and the Braidwood Area Chamber of Commerce.