STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK
Look to the skies—five Warhawks will be flying over Hailey as part of the town’s annual Memorial Day remembrance.
The 17th annual Hailey Memorial Day Ceremony, held at 11 a.m. Monday, May 28, will honor the nearly 400 veterans from Blaine County laid to rest at Hailey Cemetery.
This year’s theme, said Geegee Lowe, is “Honor the Sacrifice, Continue the Dream.”
The service will include the Mountain Home Air Force Base Honor Guard, the Navy Operational Support Center and the Idaho Army National Guard.
Music will be provided by members of the Boise Highlander Bagpipers and A Few Good Men.
The Honored Guest Master of Ceremonies will be LTC Douglas Uphoff U.S. ARMY National Guard Idaho. The honored keynote speaker will be Brig. Gen. William B. Richy, director of the Joint Staff Idaho National Guard and acting director of the Office of Emergency Management Idaho Military Division.
Local guest speaker will be Ret. Lt. Commander Richard W. Fife, U.S. Navy.
The Girl Scouts of the Silver Sage will provide refreshments. And a Veterans, Military and Volunteers lunch will be served at 12:15 p.m. at the Grange Hall.
The Warhawk flyover will feature five vintage military fighters from the Warhawk Air Museum of Nampa, who will also provide a “missing man” tribute at about 11:30 a.m.
Pilots Mark Peterson and John Maloney will pilot P-51 Mustangs. Jim Thomas will pilot a P-40E Kittyhawk with a shark mouth on front. John Hinton will plot a P-40N Warhawk with a parrot head on front. And the fifth pilot, flying a P-40, will be David Vopat from Lewiston.
The Hailey Cemetery will be decorated from dusk Friday, May 25, to dusk Monday, May 28, with American flags and a carnation placed on every known veteran’s gravesite.
For more information, call 208-720-7395 or 208-788-2007.