The borough of Windber and the surrounding communities will celebrate Memorial Day on May 29th, 2023 with a parade beginning at 10:00 AM. Memorial Day services will follow in Windber Veterans Park. The American Legion Windber Post No. 137, Windber VFW Post No. 4795, and volunteer members of our community will decorate the graves of our Veterans in the cemeteries throughout the Windber area. Grave decoration will take place on Sunday, May 21st starting at noon. The public is welcome and encouraged to participate.
Memorial Day celebration is sponsored by the Windber Veterans Association which is composed of the American Legion Windber Post No. 137, Windber VFW Post No. 4795, the World War II 50th Anniversary Commemorative Committee, and the Windber Veterans Park Committee. The Windber World War II Committee was the guiding force behind the establishment of the Windber Veterans Park. This park was dedicated during Windber’s 100th-anniversary celebration in July 1997 in conjunction with the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of America’s participation in World War II. The park is a tribute to all service men and women past, present, and future; and demonstrates the community’s commitment to honor the sons and daughters who have or will answer the call to defend the land they love and the principles for which it stands.
During Memorial Day 2010, a Memorial Wall was dedicated in Veterans Park to honor those Windber area Veterans whose service was “above and beyond the call of duty” in defense of our country in time of war. The black granite wall has the names of those who sacrificed their lives for their country including those killed in action, missing in action, and prisoners of war from the Civil War, WWI, WWII, the Korea War, the Vietnam War, and the Global War on Terrorism.
This year’s guest speaker for Memorial Day 2023 is Sarah Hamilton. Ms. Hamilton is a homeschooled high school junior who was born in Johnstown, PA, and lived in Richland with her three siblings and her parents, Ron and Robin Hamilton. After her father passed away, she moved with her mother to Windber where she currently resides. Sarah was honored to represent Windber and the Western Section of Pennsylvania in the 2023 American Legion State Oratorical Contest in Harrisburg, where she received a third-place award. She chose the Preamble as her oratorical subject because it outlines the duties of citizens, which are essential to maintaining our republic. Sarah participates in the youth group and the drama team at Oakland Church in Johnstown and plays piano for the worship team. She also writes in many forms, including fiction, journaling, essays, and speeches for scholarship contests. After her graduation from high school, she plans to take a gap year, then attend Regent University for Film and Television.
The American Legion Windber Post No. 137 will sponsor a free breakfast for Veterans from 7AM – 9AM on Memorial Day at the Post Canteen on 14th Street in Windber. All Veterans and Memorial Day ceremony participants are welcome.