Tolland Preps for Memorial Day Parade and Service

From the Town of Tolland: The Town of Tolland will hold its largest annual gathering, the 26th annual Memorial Day Parade and Service on Sunday, May 28th at 1:00 pm. The parade is organized by the Tolland Permanent Celebration Committee with the Town’s Veterans Recognition Commission and VFW Post 241. It will be held rain or shine. The parade begins next to the Preschool of the Arts on Tolland Stage Road, traverses the Town Green, turns right on Old Post Road and ends at the Tolland Intermediate School at 104 Old Post Road. The theme of the parade is “Honoring our Heroes”. Kathy Bach, President of the Tolland Historical Society, will be announcing the parade from the Old Tolland County Jail and Museum and U.S. Army Veteran, Chris Prytko will be announcing the parade from in front of Town Hall at 21 Tolland Green.

A solemn Memorial Day ceremony will follow the parade on the lawn of the Intermediate School with U.S. Marine Veteran, Tom Farrish as the master of ceremonies and featuring music by the Tolland High School marching band. Before, during and after the parade, the rear of Town Hall will be open for members of the public to view the town’s Veterans Wall of Honor.

Parking will be available at Town Hall and behind and across from the Intermediate School. Any groups that would like to march or enter a float in the float contest should send an email to the Permanent Celebration Committee at tollandpcc@gmail.com.

Essay and Multimedia Contest and Coloring Pages

Tolland students can show their patriotism by taking part in the 2017 Memorial Day essay and multimedia contest. This year’s theme is “Honoring our Heroes: Why Fallen Members of the Military are Your Heroes.” Winners will be honored at the ceremony following the parade. Prizes of Barnes and Noble gift cards will be awarded for grades 3 to 5, 6 to 8 and 9 to 12.

The contest is open to all Tolland students. Entries must be written in the form of an essay. They must be typed, double spaced in 12-point font and be no longer than one page. They must include the student’s name, address, phone number and grade.

Students in grades 6 to 8 and 9 to 12 have the option of submitting a multimedia entry about this year’s topic in the form of a Prezi presentation, a PowerPoint presentation or video. Prezi and PowerPoint presentations should be no more than six slides and can include text, photos and videos. Video entries should be more from one to three minutes long. All entries need to be sent to tollandpcc@gmail.com by May 10th.
In the weeks before the parade, Tolland children can also take part in the festivities by coloring a Memorial Day page provided by the committee. The pages will soon be available at the Tolland Public Library. Children who bring their completed artwork to the library in May will receive a prize.

Photo courtesy of the Town of Tolland