Memorial Day in Metuchen 2009
is dedicated to the honor and support
of United States service personnel,
past and present,
especially those in harm’s way.
- Click the picture above, or click here, for a slide show from the 2009 Metuchen Memorial Day parade and ceremony. (Isn’t that a cool picture? I love it! SO many people!) Turn up the sound for a very special treat! When the show is finished, it will jump back here where you can leave a comment showing support for the troops, and thanking the parade committee and our special guests. As usual, the committee is a well-oiled machine, planning all year to put together this event. And I swear I don’t know how they keep managing such great weather!
- I am moved by Memorial Day events in our small town, and am grateful to so many people who participated in the event and to so many who stood on our streets waving and cheering. You all graciously allowed my camera to capture many touching moments and remarkable faces. Above, Samantha Cook sang the National Anthem at the ceremony, and provided audio for the slide show as well. Beautiful job, Sammie! Thank you!
- I was out way too early on Memorial Day morning. I wanted to watch the sun rise.
- Little did I know that this was the day I would meet a most special man, Daniel E. Robinson. He was one of the Grand Marshals in the parade and when I met him after the ceremony, we instantly began chatting about how special Memorial Day in Metuchen truly is. So I asked him if I could record him talking about Memorial Day. He graciously agreed and the result is a very special addition to the slide show this year.
A sergeant in the U.S. Marine Corp. serving as a communications officer in the South Pacific during World War II, he later went on to become a pioneer in telecommunications research. He helped NASA launch the Mercury and Apollo space capsules! I mean, what are the odds that of all the people at that ceremony, I would zone in on a world famous communications expert without knowing a single thing about him prior to the event. I think it was fate, or, as Sgt. Robinson says on the slide show audio, maybe it was God that put us together.
- Catherine Manchero won the poster contest. Her drawing graced the cover of the program. Congratulations, Catherine! (My photograph shows how her picture looked hanging in the window of the Metuchen Savings Bank.)
- Some of the other winning posters are shown in the slide show. Congratulations to everyone who participated. This is one of my favorites.
- Fave!
- Before the parade begins, I like to roam around the line-up and observe what’s going on. It struck me as poignant that this man was momentarily all alone in the chaos.
- Fave!
- The group that comes from Lincoln High School always impresses me with their poise and politeness.
- I love all the decorated bicycles.
- I like to capture the crowds too, from the faces of young people to the fashions and emotions. What an adorable face he has!
- There were HUGE crowds this year.
- She is making that face because of some loud gun thingie. (“Thingie” being a technical term that might include a drum or a cannon.)
- Color guard was very colorful, and she is one of my all-time favorite color guard people!
- After I took this shot, I heard a woman say, “See, I knew that would be a good picture.”
- That’s Badger, if I remember correctly. I love her eyes! Wow!
- This is probably the coolest posed snapshot picture I ever took.
- Major Bayard Smith of the U.S. Army National Guard recently returned from serving in the Middle East. He was one of the Grand Marshals.
- We’re all so glad he’s safe. (That’s his dad above.)
- Everybody LOVES the major’s cavalry hat!
- Sgt. Ted Ayotte of the Metuchen Police Department will be retiring soon. Jan Margolis, chair of the parade committee, surprised him with a special award.
- As is tradition, Vietnam veterans gather around Legion Hall to ceremoniously pour out their beer in memory of those who haven’t made their way home.
- That actually looks pretty good, and I don’t even like beer.
- Metuchen Matters posted old Memorial Day parade photographs from 1928 and 1948 on their web site a few days ago. Studying the pictures made me wonder what daily life was like on those specific days. So when I saw the sign above in front of What’s the Scoop, I thought it would be cool to capture something that showed a little about what our life is like. Besides the prices, “bailout” on the board is a telling feature of our time right now.
- Can you guess what it is about this picture that drew me to it? Oooh, and one more little blog contest for you: I made a cameo in the slide show. Did you see me?
- Memorial Day is a highlight of living in Metuchen. Presented by the Metuchen Area Chamber of Commerce, the parade and ceremony requires many volunteers and many hours of work in preparation.
If you have a moment, please leave a comment below thanking veterans and their families for all they have sacrificed for our country. And be sure to thank the Memorial Day Parade Committee for all their hard work!
And be sure to leave a special word of thanks to Sammie Cook and Sgt. Robinson for making our slide show so special.
May God grant us peace and protect our troops,
~julie
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My family calls me "the mamarazzi."
julie you did such a great job on that slide show. plus you got my girlfriend and her son in one of the pictures, it made my day and hers. julie it was so nice seeing you and your family the other day. hope to see you all again soon. take care! tommy
Perfect ten. You captured Metuchen and Memorial day in a way that says Patriotism is alive and well. I’m sending it to my friends in Italy, France and Argentina. Best regards.
Julie,
You did a fabulous job with the Memorial Days pictures! Your work gets better and better each year.
It was a special day for us the Memorial Day. My father-in-law, who is a WWII veteran marched in the parade this year along with a few of our friend’s fathers. Arthur Samsoe (my father-in-law) was on Iwo Jima – day 4 of the invasion.
Again, Kudos on an amazing job. It’s always a pleasure to see your images.
Best,
Chris Battaglia
Fantastic job of bringing me back to Metuchen for Memorial Day. Dave Bellware, MHS 1969.
Julie, thank you for all you do in sharing Metuchen’s wonderful tribute to this great Nation and our veterans past and present.
Awesome pictures of so many good friends…the smiles on Jan’s and Nick’s face are great…I am so proud and humble to have shared life in the amazing community of Metuchen. The dedication of the parade committee is a labor of love, I know. Outstanding job, once again! God Bless you and God Bless America!
This was Great!
Makes me homesick!
I grew up at 35 Grove Ave, I am a 1980 grad of Metuchen High School and remember many, many Memorial Day parades.
I am currently stationed at Fort Sam Houston in Texas.
It is comforting to know Metuchen is still a patriotic Home Town.
Thank You!
Dane
This is truly amazing. One of, if not the, best depiction of America I have ever seen. The search for this is what still brings a constant stream of people to these shores. And I have for sure never heard “Ask not what your country can do for you…” spoken with greater meaning than it is here by Daniel Robinson, a WW2 Grand Marshal. He was a key figure in making the Mercury and Apollo space missions possible and was one of the engineers who solved the Apollo 13 dilemma when they were running out of oxygen and power in the lunar module (made famous by the Tom Hanks movie) – among many other accomplishments. The lovely voice in the beginning is my niece Sammy Cook.
Julie, I am so taken with your slide show that I just showed it to my husband Bond, who asked me to forward it to his office, so he can share it with his media relations friends. I do hope to see your exquisite pictures of the beautiful Girl Scouts on cookie boxes in coming years. Amazing work, Julie! You must never sleep. P.S. I think I see you in the mirrored sunglasses about halfway through the slideshow.
Hi Lynn,
Thank you so much for your kind words about my work! Yes, that’s me in the sunglasses. My sons are always complaining that I’m never IN any of the slide shows that I make, so they pretty much insisted I include that one in the show. I love it!
P.S. I really don’t think I could live without Thin Mints.
Julie,
Thanks for doing a great job, as always. I feel like I am in Metuchen watching the parade even when I am in Fountain Hills, AZ.
Jennifer Colitre
Truly amazing Julie! I can feel the sense of community and the love of country through my computer…literally can feel goosebumps tingling my arms and warming my heart. Amazing people and town you live in…just amazing.
This just makes me want to move! I LOVE the picture of the vet with what must be his granddaughter in the car next to him…the resemblance is uncany and she looks so proud (as we all feel). Caught your reflection in the sunglasses of someone…didn’t think you liked being in pictures (I had to take a double-look, even though I spotted the chocolate patch pretty quickly
Thanks for sharing! You obviously make Metuchen proud!
The portrait of Sgt. Robinson is, without question, your most stunning image in the whole slideshow. His kindness and intellect are evident in his eyes. You have given a gift to the Robinson family that they will treasure forever.
Julie,
My wife Julie sent me your website link and asked me to watch it and look for a couple of “special photos” that she noticed. Quite frankly, I didn’t have much time, but I thought I’d watch anyway. Not only did I see a photo of one of my beautiful daughters, and a shot of their Grandpa walking in the parade, but can I tell you that I wept through the entire video and it made me that much more aware of what makes life truly important. Your tribute changed my life just a little bit today! Thank you.
Ok, that one made me cry too.
Thanks to everyone for all your wonderful comments! I will make sure Sgt. Robinson sees the amazing response!
Julie,
You are such a gift to the town of Metuchen. This tribute was so beautiful and meaningful, and I enjoyed seeing and hearing so many people I know. You bring dignity to every subject you embrace.
Thank you.
Susan
Dear Julie
I would like to thank you again for your beautiful pictures and slide show of our Memorial Day Parade in Metuchen. I can not remember the number of years but I believe this is four. You have done a fantastic production every year. My full heart of thanks go out to you. I will always treasure your photos of my family. Especially of ny son and grandson this year.
You have made it possible to see the fruits of our parade committees efforts to provide REAL MEANING MEMORIAL DAY and to FREEDOM in the UNITED STATES of AMERICA.
God Blessed us by having Daniel E Robinson as a Grand Marshall and a elegant resident of Metuchen. Daniel’s words are what our brave Armed Forces have fought and died for. I can not express in words how thankful I am to have spent time on earth listening and speaking with Daniel E Robinson. Daniel is truly an AMERICAN HERO! who all youth and adults should look up to. THANK YOU again JULIE.
Sincerely Walter Zjawin Parade committee
Thank YOU, Walter, for all your hard work every year! You are such a gift to our community.
Julie,
I am touched by what you and your folks did for Memorial Day celebration. I only hope that everyone understands what Memorial Day stands for: to honor not the living but all those that died in battle or because of, to preserve our country and the freedom that we have but sometimes don’t appreciate. Maybe you know but just in case, many years ago Memorial Day used to be called Decoration Day because that was the day when loved ones decorated the graves of the ones they lost with flowers (Poppy Day was derived from this) and that started as far back as the Civil War.
I congratulate you once again for you superb work, but knowing you I expected nothing less.
Fondly,
Tom