Here are the Memorial Day events going on in Cape Cod towns for 2021
Hyannis
The Troops in the Spotlight event in Hyannis, in its 17th year, has become the largest Memorial Day event in New England, according to its organizers from Cape Cod Cares for the Troops.
This year, the celebration of U.S. troops will stretch over 12 hours Sunday, involving ceremonies, remembrances, donations and a chance to view military vehicles, all at the Capetown Plaza parking lot. To remember troops overseas, military personnel will again take one-hour shifts standing at attention on a platform that can be viewed by passersby along Route 132.
The event focuses on honoring veterans from all wars, wounded warriors and Gold and Blue Star families. The opening ceremony will be at 11:30 a.m. Sunday, with a particular focus on veterans from World War II, Korea, Iraq and Afghanistan as well as the families. At 3 p.m, there will be a Special Honor Ceremony for Vietnam Veterans as a way, organizers say, “for our community to give them the ‘Welcome Home’ they never received.”
The annual Troops in the Spotlight event runs from 11:30 a.m. Sunday through midnight at the Capetown Plaza on Route 132 in Hyannis.
At midnight, there will be a flag-lowering ceremony and playing of “Taps” in observance of Memorial Day as the closing ceremony.
Yarmouth
Bikers make their way under a large flag hung from the Yarmouth Fire Department ladder truck at last year’s drive-by Memorial Day event at Yarmouth Town Hall. The procession will take place again Monday.
Yarmouth will host its second Memorial Day Honor Drive-By this year. The event, organized by Maureen Tuohy-Bedford, will kick off at 10:40 a.m. Monday, when residents with cars or motorcycles will line up in the parking lot of the South Yarmouth Post Office (1057 Route 28) to recognize the sacrifices of America’s servicemen and women, then begin a procession to town hall at 11 a.m.
There, a garden decorated with flags will host two tables, one to recognize POWs and one to recognize Gold Star families and the loved ones they lost. This year, Gold Star Brother Jeffrey N. Johnson will honor his brother, Army Col. Theodore Fred Johnson, who was killed in action in the Vietnam War.
Bourne
If you’re talking large events, think about 77,000 flags. Volunteers are being sought to place flags on every gravesite at Massachusetts National Cemetery in Bourne on Saturday as part of Operation Flags for Vets. A ceremony at 10 a.m. at the flagpole by the cemetery entrance will be followed by people fanning out to plant those approximately 77,000 flags. The cemetery is on Connery Avenue off the Otis Rotary on Route 28.
Centerville
The Centerville Civic Association, led by Steve Luciani and Tim Tuder, will host a drive-by Memorial Day Parade on Monday. Fifty veterans, including a 100-year-old nurse who served aboard a ship in World War II, will gather at 8 a.m. at the Centerville Recreation Building at 524 Main St.
The veterans, each holding an American flag, will spread out along one side of Main Street, where people can drive by to pay their respects for the veterans’ service.
Barnstable
At 10 a.m., the Barnstable Police Department will close the road through Monument Square, and the police color guard will march past the veterans to the square. Then the veterans will march to the square for an hour-long ceremony.
The ceremony will include a rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner” by Barnstable Town Council President Matthew P. Levesque, a poem, a few remarks and the playing of taps by a Barnstable student bugler. As church bells toll, six wreaths will be laid, each marking a war in which American soldiers and sailors lost their lives. Each veteran will be presented with red, white and blue trophies bearing the message, “Thank you for your service.”
Eastham
The town of Eastham will hold a Memorial Day ceremony at 9 a.m. Monday on the Windmill Green on Route 6.
Mashpee
In Mashpee, a service will take place starting at 10 a.m. Monday at Mashpee Community Park, 13 Great Neck Road North. There are 25 stones in the garden there and a yellow rose will be placed by each.
After a parade to the gazebo, a flag will be raised and the national anthem sung by Jessica Rullo. The invocation and benediction will be given by Rabbi Harold Robinson, retired Rear Admiral in the U.S. Navy, and guest speakers will include VFW Post Commander Steve Koglin, Women’s Auxiliary president Cherie Peters, Mashpee Board of Selectmen Chair Carol Sherman, Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Chairman Brian Weeden, and Christopher Faux, a retired Brigadier General from the Air National Guard.
There will also be the reading of names of Mashpee’s fallen heroes, and “Taps” played by Mashpee High School bugler William Henley.
Provincetown
“Provincetown Remembers,” the town’s annual Memorial Day observance, will be held in a modified version at 11 a.m. Monday at Motta Field, 25 Winslow St. Community members will be asked to social-distance and wear masks if not vaccinated.
