The Mattoon Veteran Kids will once again return to the village for the annual Memorial Day parade.
Organized by James Fonder, adjutant of John Owen American Legion Post 287, children honor veterans by dressing up as military veterans, Native Americans or other historical figures and walking behind a float in the parade.
“During the winter, I kept myself busy making history moments on plywood depicting all that became our nation,” Fonder said. “There are over 20 individuals up to 6 feet tall on the float, where I have the Vietnam monument, flag of Iwo Jima, the famous sailor kissing the nurse at the end of World War II, American Indian Code Talkers, Tuskegee all black air pilots, Amelia Earhart and so many more created with paint and wood — even to the service dogs and an astronaut in his space suit.”
After the parade, the children will join the Legion for a memorial at the cemetery, the final resting place for many local veterans.
“With the participation of the children in the parade, they learn to honor and remember what our nation has gone through, and no one is ever forgotten for the sacrifices they gave for our nation’s freedom,” Fonder said.
Just a week ago, Fonder was still busy working on the float.
In the middle of the new picture will be a Native American in the Vietnam War holding a spear and honoring his ancestors.
“Our nation was created by many origins, and they should never be forgotten,” he said.
Post 287 does not have its own meeting hall, but it does have many artifacts and memorabilia from local veterans, including manuscripts from its research of Mattoon veterans in Woodlawn Cemetery. Those veterans served in the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
It also has a camera from its namesake, John Owen, that displays pictures of those serving in WWI prior to Owen being killed.
AT A GLANCE
Weekend activities include the following:
• May 24: 8-10 a.m., free community breakfast at Shepherd’s Watch gym; 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mattoon Area Museum and Gift Shop open.
• May 25: Area church services, 9 a.m. Lutheran and Methodist, 10 a.m. Catholic (Phlox) and 11 a.m. Nazarene; 2-5 p.m., Mattoon Area Museum and Gift Shop open.
• May 26: 11 a.m. Mattoon Memorial Day parade; immediately following the parade is a veterans memorial service at Woodlawn Cemetery; noon, fire department cookout; 9-11 a.m., Mattoon Area Museum and Gift Shop open; 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., old car show.
Wood cutouts depict significant people and moments in American history and are part of a float in the annual Mattoon Memorial Day parade. The float is put together by James Fonder, adjutant of John Owen American Legion Post 287. (Contributed)
