Scout troops, veterans groups and other volunteers from across Suffolk County decorated gravesites at Calverton National Cemetery Saturday with American flags in commemoration of Memorial Day, which is observed this year on Monday, May 26.
Nearly 5,000 volunteers placed flags at 225,000 gravesites across the cemetery to honor the service and sacrifice of our nation’s veterans, the cemetery administration said in a social media post. Gravesite flags will remain in place until May 31.
The flag placement event is coordinated annually by the Support Committee for Calverton National Cemetery, a nonprofit veterans services organization established to support veterans of all service branches, their family and friends at Calverton National Cemetery. The organization has been involved with all capital projects and beautification and improvement efforts at the cemetery, including the Avenue of the Flags and the Memorial Garden & Assembly Area, since the cemetery opened in 1978.
Calverton National Cemetery’s Memorial Day ceremonies will take place at the assembly area on Monday, beginning at 1 p.m. They will include presentations of colors and patriotic music performed by the North Shore Community Band and a keynote address.
RiverheadLOCAL photos by Emil Breitenbach Jr.
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