Lake George remembers fallen soldiers with Memorial Day parade and ceremony

The mood was somber in Shepard Park Saturday morning, May 25, as the Lake George community gathered to remember America’s fallen service members. “More than one million soldiers have given their lives in service to our nation,” said Fran Cocozza, guest speaker at the Lake George Memorial Day ceremony. “One million fallen soldiers, that’s an amazing number if you think about it. It’s hard to wrap your mind around a number that large. But think about this, each of those one million is a son, a daughter, a mother, a father, an aunt or uncle to someone left behind, someone who loved them very much.”

The Lake George American Legion Post 374 hosted the Memorial Day ceremony, which included a wreath laying, gun salute by the Warrensburg American Legion, and playing of the Canadian and American National Anthems by the Lake George Community Band and Lake George Jr.-Sr. High School Band. The ceremony was preceded by a parade up Canada Street led by the American Legion.

“Let us not forget those who gave the ultimate sacrifice,” says Cocozza, who noted that the recent discovery of what appears to be a Revolutionary War burial ground in the Village makes the day’s remembrance even more relevant to the local community. He asked those in attendance to remember the “…thousands who gave their lives on the shores of Lake George, on the beaches of Normandy to the Peninsula of Korea, the jungles of Vietnam, the deserts of Iraq, and the hills and mountains of Afghanistan.” He urged everyone to “go home today and thank a Veteran. Take a moment to reflect, never take for granted what they have done for our country and for you and I.”    

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Photos: Lake George Memorial Day parade and ceremony