By Rachel Wartian

Intern

Memorial Day is a day to honor the fallen men and women who gave their lives in service to our country.

In Suffolk, two ceremonies will be held on Memorial Day in honor of those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. One will be held at Albert G. Horton Jr. Memorial Veterans Cemetery and the other at Cedar Hill Cemetery.

The American Legion, Post 88, will co-host its Memorial Day ceremony with the Albert G. Horton Jr. Memorial Veterans Cemetery. The keynote speaker this year will be retired Col. Dale E. Hruby.

Hruby graduated from West Point in 1958 and was commissioned 2nd lieutenant in the armoured cavalry. He then graduated with his master’s degree from Columbia University in 1965. He was stationed in Germany and Vietnam before retiring in 1984.

Hruby has won numerous awards and decorations, including the Purple Heart and the Army Commendation, among many others. Today, he lives in Patriots Colony Williamsburg.

The ceremony will begin at 10 a.m. The ceremony will consist of the Barbershop Harmony Society singing the national anthem, “Taps” by Bugles Across America, and the placing of wreaths around the cemetery at 5310 Milners Road.

The Cedar Hill ceremony will be hosted by the American Legion Post 57 starting at 11 a.m. with guest speaker, Col. Robert H. Kelly.

Kelly graduated with a Master of Arts in strategic military studies from Air University in 2017. He has served in the U.S. Air Force since 1996, including deployments to Egypt and Iraq. Throughout his service, he has won various awards, including the Meritorious Service Medal with five oak leaf clusters. Kelly is currently the chief joint force development director in Suffolk.

The ceremony will include guest singer Olivia Gahee. She will be performing the national anthem and “God Bless America” among other songs. There will also be placing of wreaths throughout the cemetery and a reading from the Daughters of the American Revolution about the Spanish-American War.

Cedar Hill, located on the east side of North Main Street near its intersection with Mahan Street, is the burial site for many who fought in the Civil War, Spanish-American War, both world wars, the Korean War and Vietnam.

Both events are free and open to the public.