Navy veteran Jason Bower will be the featured speaker when Brookfield Township holds its annual Memorial Day ceremony May 25 at Brookfield Township Cemetery.
The event opens at 10 a.m. with a procession featuring veterans, local safety forces and community service and citizens groups. The procession starts on Grove Street and makes the short jaunt along Route 7 to the cemetery. Any veteran or group that wishes to walk or ride in the procession can meet with event organizers at 9:30 a.m. near the Brookfield Public Library. Transportation will be provided for those who need it.
Candy is not allowed to be thrown.
A ceremony will be held at the cemetery with the reading of a list of veterans with Brookfield ties who have died since the last ceremony; the laying of a wreath by members of the Brookfield Township Volunteer Fireman’s Auxiliary, escorted by a firefighter; a gun salute by members of the Brookfield Police Department; music by the Brookfield High School Band; the playing of “Taps”; a featured speaker; and the reading of poems, including “In Flanders Field,” by high school students.
Veterans are invited to stand near the flag in the cemetery for the observance.
Bower, a 2011 Brookfield High School graduate, rose to the rank of petty officer second class in the Navy. He was stationed in Bethesda, Md., and Jacksonville, Fla., stateside, and also in Crete and Romania. The married father of two daughters is a robotics engineer for Miller Industries, a manufacturer of heavy-duty tow trucks.
Following the observance, a free luncheon will be held at the Brookfield banquet hall behind the fire department, 774 Route 7. The luncheon is presented by the auxiliary.
Brookfield Township Road Department will post flags on the graves of veterans buried in Brookfield Township Cemetery at 9 a.m. May 16. Any individual, organization or group that would like to assist can show up at that time.
The Brookfield Rotary Club and the Brookfield trustees organize the observance.
