Transit Veterans Association (TVA) will kick-off the Memorial Day Weekend with a special program open to MTA employees, retirees and the general public, on May 24, at the Vietnam Veteran Memorial Park, 55 Water Street, in Lower Manhattan. TVA’s ceremony usually draws a large crowd because of its proximity to the tragedy of 9/11 at Ground Zero and the tributes made to fallen soldiers in all the wars. Attendees are advised to be prompt as it is open seating.
Some visitors who attend dress in military uniforms and some bring photos of lost ones who perished in the ashes on 9/11. For Gold Star Mothers and Wounded Warriors, the Vietnam Memorial Park site is a sacred place for peace and reflection.
MTA CEO, Thomas S. Prendergast; NYCT President, Carmen Bianco; Darryl Irick, chief executive, Regional Buses Operations; NYC Police Commissioner, Raymond Kelly; FDNY Commissioner Salvatore Cassano, and DCAS Commissioner, Edna Wells Handy, and other NYC officials are expected to attend.
Color Guards and Transit Bagpipers will lead a processional. Members of the Tuskegee Airmen are also expected to participate in the ceremony. (Several Airmen were MTA retirees!)
TVA Memorial Day ceremonies will also be held at other locations throughout the transit system in the outer boroughs, as many of the employees and retirees are veterans. These smaller ceremonies may include music, banners, moments of silence or a designated time to do salutes. All activities are planned with the utmost care so as to not interfere with transit operations and delivery of service to the public.
NYC Area Parades, May 27, 2013
The City will continue to honor our fallen heroes with parades and events throughout the weekend all over the five boroughs. The Little Neck–Douglaston parade in Queens is called the largest. Brooklyn’s Memorial Day Parade (the oldest at over 145 years old!) begins at 87th Street and Third Avenue. African American veterans, sponsored by Black Veterans for Social Justice (BVSJ) will be featured in the Brooklyn parade at Restoration Plaza, 1360 Fulton Street, Bedford Stuyvesant. In Manhattan, a smaller Inwood Parade, begins at Dyckman Street and Broadway. Check the City’s events calendar for a full list of events.
Basic Holiday Information: Memorial Day, a U.S. Federal Holiday, is celebrated on Monday, May 27, 2013. Schools, banks and post offices are closed. Most restaurants, stores and events are open. Memorial Day Weekend marks the unofficial start of summer.
Other Memorial Day Events in NYC: The NY Philharmonic will play a free concert at St. John the Divine at 8 p.m. Go to: Free Memorial Day Concert Details; Memorial Day Weekend events at the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum; and the Metropolitan Museum of Art is open on Memorial Day as part of the special Met Holiday Mondays sponsored by NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg.