How Memorial Day is being marked across Minnesota
MINNEAPOLIS — Memorial Day may be the unofficial start to summer, but it's important to remember the true meaning behind the day.
There will be plenty of events across Minnesota to honor the service and sacrifice of our fallen soldiers.
Gov. Tim Walz will recognize the day at an annual event at Fort Snelling National Cemetery.
More than 1,000 people are expected to attend that ceremony. Volunteers spent the weekend putting up roughly 200,000 flags at the cemetery where service members and their spouses are buried in preparation for Monday morning's event, which starts at 9:45 a.m.
Lakewood Cemetery in Minneapolis is also holding a ceremony at 10:30 a.m. It will be followed by free refreshments and activities for the whole family, including writing a postcard to a veteran and ribbons for the living memory tree.
At the capitol in St. Paul, the Anoka County chapter of Vietnam Veterans of America will also hold a Memorial Day service at 3 p.m.
Many communities outside of Minneapolis and St. Paul will also hold their own Memorial Day events.
In Hastings, the annual March for Them kicks off at 7:30 a.m. Every year, community members gather to do a 10-mile scenic walk along the river trail loop to remember the fallen.
In White Bear Lake, a parade from City Hall to Union Cemetery kicks off at 9:30 a.m., followed by a memorial service. There will also be refreshments at the American Legion following the ceremony.
In Excelsior, a program at the Excelsior Elementary Auditorium will start at 10 a.m. and be followed by a parade at 11 a.m. down Water Street to Oak Hill Cemetery. There will also be a community lunch from 11:30 a.m. to noon.
In Eden Prairie, the ceremony kicks off at 11 a.m. at Purgatory Creek Park.
First Lt. Jim Rasmussen will be this year's keynote speaker. He was a member of the 349th Squadron of the 100th Bomb Group during World War II. The 100th Bomb Group's story was recently featured in the acclaimed Apple TV+ miniseries "Masters of the Air."
Many of these events are free and open to the public and organizers encourage you to bring the whole family out.