The Mineola Memorial Day Parade will be held and conducted by members of the Mineola Fire Department and Boy Scouts Troop 45 of Mineola, Trustee Jeffrey Clark announced.
“The fire department and Boy Scouts are making sure this tradition continues,” Clark said at a village board meeting Wednesday night. “I encourage everyone to come out and enjoy the parade and if you are part of an organization please consider bringing them down, the larger the better.”
Mayor Paul Pereira said he was thankful for the support the two groups have given the village in taking responsibility.
“I want to thank them for really stepping up, unfortunately, many of our veterans from overseas, Korea and Vietnam are no longer with us,” Pereira said. “And for whatever reason, some of our younger veterans are not really joining veterans organizations like they used to. As a result, there was a possibility of no parade but the department and scouts stepped up.”
Pereira said at the board’s previous meeting the village was approached by the two organizations who inquired about potentially conducting the parade. In years past, it was organized by the Mineola VFW Post 1305, which closed down due to lack of membership recently, and the American Legion.
For the past two years, the annual parade has been on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, an observance was held in Memorial Park.
The parade will begin at 11 a.m. from Williston Park and proceed along Westbury Avenue, Roslyn Road, Jericho Turnpike and Marcellus Road and end at the Mineola Library, according to the village’s website.
A remembrance ceremony will follow at the Memorial Park amphitheater.
In other village news, the new Water Administration Building on Westbury Avenue has opened.
Pereira said the state-of-the-art building was constructed following the demolition of the previous headquarters on Elm Place, which was over a century old, in order to conduct work on well No. 1. Village officials were given a tour of the property and also planted a tree beside the building on April 29, Arbor Day, to mark the occasion.
“We’re glad that they have a space where they will be able to do their work with minimal interruption to the neighborhood,” Pereira said.
