Deptford’s Oak Valley neighborhood was the setting for the township’s annual Memorial Day parade and ceremony on May 26.
Things began at 10:15 a.m., when participants began preparations for the parade at Oak Valley firehouse. Leading the way were members of Deptford High School’s NJROTC color guard and drill unit. The parade also included local Cub Scout Pack 62; the high-school marching band; and the township’s police and fire departments, with vehicles in tow.
The procession made its way up Princeton Boulevard, then to University Boulevard, before reaching Oak Valley Elementary School, home of Deptford Veterans Park. The ceremony portion of the Memorial Day service opened with local resident Julia Rivera singing the national anthem.
Dozens gathered around the monument despite the heat, including members of Westville VFW Post 2174, who each took turns placing wreaths that represented the branches of the military. Post Commander Lenny Mondile then addressed the crowd.
“As long as two comrades survive, so long will the veterans of foreign wars of the United States render tribute to our heroic dead,” he noted. “On this day, forever consecrated to our heroic dead, we are assembled once again to express our sincere reverence. This monument represents the resting place of many departed comrades who served in all wars.
“Wherever the body of a comrade lies, there the ground is hollow,” Mondile continued. “Our presence here is in solemn commemoration of all these men and women. An expression of our tribute to their devotion to duty, to their courage and patriotism. By their services on land, on sea and in the air, they have made us our debtors.
“For the flag of our nation still flies over a land of free people.”
Members of Deptford council were also on hand for the service, as was state Assemblyman Bill Moen, whose father was a Vietnam veteran and whose grandfathers both served in World War II.
“My grandfather lost his left eye from a grenade explosion as the fighting continued,” Moen noted. “I remember as a child he wore a pair of eyeglasses with a shaded left lens. When my 6-year-old self-asked him about it, he would say something along the lines of, ‘This was the price that I paid for our freedom, and I was one of the lucky ones.'”
