Elgin's Memorial Day service to honor 75th anniversary of U.S. Air Force

The Elgin Patriotic Memorial Association, in cooperation with the city of Elgin, will be paying tribute to the 75th anniversary of the United States Air Force at the Bluff City Cemetery Program at 11 a.m. Monday, May 30.

Memorial Day ceremonies will start with a Catholic Mass along with a combined color guard, rifle salute, and the playing of taps at 8:30 a.m. at Mount Hope Cemetery, 1001 Villa St. in Elgin.

It will be followed at 9 a.m. by a service to honor those buried at Lakewood Memorial Park, 30W730 Route 20, in the cemetery's Garden of Honor and include a combined color guard. The observance will conclude with a rifle salute and the playing of taps.

Organized by the Elgin Navy Club and the Elgin Marine Corps League, the 9:45 a.m. program at Elgin Veterans Memorial Park is especially designed to pay tribute to veterans interred at sea. Following a presentation by Elgin Navy Club members, the service will conclude with the strewing of flowers into the Fox River, rifle salute, and the playing of taps.

Elgin's Veterans Memorial Park is located at 274 N. Grove Ave., adjacent to the Gail Borden Public Library.

This year's program at Bluff City Cemetery will feature keynote speaker Mark Smith, Elgin Patriotic Memorial Association president and senior vice commander of Elgin American Legion Post 57.

This program also will feature the Elgin Master Chorale, Larkin High School Band, and Elgin's Poet Laureate Gareth Mann.

Local students will continue the long held tradition of reading Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and General John Logan's Orders which established Memorial Day.

The most solemn moment of the morning will be the laying of organizational wreaths at the Grand Army of the Republic Memorial - an observance akin to the laying of wreaths at the Tomb of the Unknowns in Washington D.C. Activities will include a roll call of deceased veterans, a rifle salute, and the playing of taps.

There will be shuttle bus service this year. A free shuttle bus will pick up riders at the Bluff City Cemetery main gate and east gate before and after the service for transportation to and from the ceremony area.

For those not attending in person, this service will be broadcast live on WRMN 1410 AM and WRMN Facebook Live. A video of the program will be available later in the day and posted on the city of Elgin Facebook page.

For further information, including possible weather-related changes, visit www.elginmemorialday.org.