Dozens turned out Monday for the annual Memorial Day commemoration ceremony in Franklin Park which included a wreath laying, a 21-gun salute and an old flag retirement ceremony.
Village Trustee Irene Avitia said that given the high number of veterans in Franklin Park—and families of veterans who died while serving—she’s happy the village does something to honor their service and their lives.
“We have a lot of veterans, so it’s important to recognize their contributions,” she said, prior to the ceremony at the Veterans Memorial. “The community comes out and they like to remember our vets and those we lost.”
Mayor Barrett Pedersen, the featured speaker, pointed out the sacrifice of the service members who died in action.
“We honor all those who made it possible for us to live in freedom,” Pedersen said. “It is their service, it is their sacrifice that has preserved the freedoms we cherish today.”
At the Veterans Memorial, the names of dozens and men and women who live or lived in Franklin Park and served in the military are memorialized there, and Pedersen said they made the world a better place for their service.
“We must pledge together to become a community and a county worthy of heroism,” he said. “We thank all those who have served and we thank their families. We thank them for their courage and their dignity.”
The mayor also mentioned the men and women who went missing during their service.
“We honor their sacrifice and we want their families to know it was not in vain,” he said.
Jean Wesolowski told of being in grade school when her brother went down in an airplane off the coast of San Francisco while he was in the service. His body has never been recovered and she said she’s never gotten over it.
“I cry about it,” she said. “I’ll be 90 years old and I’ll still cry about it.”
Wesolowski was decked out in a red, white and blue ensemble and said she never misses a Memorial Day ceremony in the village. She’s lived in Franklin Park for 66 years, she said.
The ceremony was organized by the local American Legion post.
“We are able to raise families, have careers and live good lives because of the men and women who never came home. May they all rest in peace,” said Commander Kendal Bishop.
Jesse Wright is a freelancer.
