STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK
Wood River Valley residents are invited to honor more than 420 veterans from Blaine County who are laid to rest at the Hailey Cemetery on Memorial Day.
The 20th Annual Hailey Memorial Day Ceremony will take place at 11 a.m. Monday, May 31, at the cemetery at 511 E. Maple St. Weather permitting, the 124th fighter wing from Gowen Field in Boise will perform a flyover during the ceremony.
The event will be preceded by a Memorial Day Walk from the Hailey Veteran’s Memorial in front of the Blaine County Courthouse to the cemetery.
The walk, sponsored by Higher Ground and Carry the Load, will follow Walnut Street to 4th Avenue South, turning to the cemetery at The Inn at Ellsworth Estate.
The ceremony at the cemetery will kick off with Advance Colors featuring the Mountain Home Air Force Base Honor Guard and a playing of the “Star Spangled Banner.” Bryan Whipple of the Boise Highlanders will play “Amazing Grace” on the bagpipes.
U.S. Military Personnel and Veterans USA will conduct the Battlefield Cross Placement ahead of a Memorial Prayer by Chaplain John Martinez. That will be followed by a wreath placement, flag raising, the recitation of “In Flanders Field,” a firing party and “Taps.”
Veterans, military and volunteers will be treated to lunch provided by Mahoney’s Bar and Grill at noon in the Upper Big Wood Grange at 609 South Third Avenue in Hailey.
“Memorial Day is a day to share the memory and honor of those whose lives were lost in defense of this great country,” said Geegee Lowe, who has helped organize the event for years. “Hailey Cemetery is the location for a community gathering in remembrance of our fallen airmen, soldiers, sailors and Marines who we must never forget. It is a time we can thank them for their service and the freedoms they have given us.”
The Hailey Cemetery will be decorated from dusk Friday, May 28, to dusk Monday, May 31, with American flags and a carnation placed on every known veteran’s gravesite.
“We always encourage all to come help us honor the true meaning of Memorial Day,” added Lowe. “While we can never fully repay our debt to America’s fallen warriors and their families, we can remember their service and honor their sacrifice.”
The ceremony took a leave of absence in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic, but it’s been a mainstay in Hailey since the 1880s. In 2001 Ray Grosvenor revived the event and the Springer Family created a tribute to fallen soldiers and veterans in 2003.
The Hailey observance will be the only military observance happening in the valley this year. But some plan to gather at the Ketchum cemetery at 11 a.m. to remember those who are no longer with us--some who have been lost in the past year. "It will be a nondenominational event to recognize our common human love," said Connie and Gary Hoffman.
Questions? Call 208-720-7395 or 208-788-2007.