Town Of Hempstead Memorial Day Service To Be Virtual

LEVITTOWN, NY — Popular annual Memorial Day parades in the Town of Hempstead will look vastly different this year as large gatherings remain banned in the state. This year, the Town is joining forces with local veterans groups to hold a virtual, livestreamed service at Veterans Memorial Park in Levittown.

Don Clavin, the town supervisor, partnered with the Levittown/Island Trees Veterans Council to host the ceremony. The council includes Levittown Veterans of Foreign Wars Post No. 9592, American Legion Post 1711 and more.

The ceremony will have limited participants, but will feature a wreath-laying by Peter Stasinski and Frank Marcinek, the local VFW and American Legion commanders, respectively. The Gold Star parents of Daniel Fuentes, a Levittown man who died while serving in Iraq, will also be in attendance.

The event can be watched on Facebook Live on Memorial Day, Monday, May 25, from 11:45 a.m. to noon. The ceremony will be closed to the public. Town residents from all communities are encouraged to participate in the Facebook Live and to share stories of their heroes in the comments section.

Clavin said the holiday is a time for people to reflect and remember those who "made the ultimate sacrifice while protecting our freedoms and liberties."

"While it may be an uncertain and difficult time for our nation, one thing is for certain – the memory of these courageous Americans must never be forgotten," he said.

Councilman Dennis Dunne, president of the Levittown/Island Trees Veterans Council and veteran of the Vietnam War, said Levittown is home to a "great number of veterans and their families." It is "certainly a proper location" to host the service, he said.