Vietnam vet to lead Bellingham parade
BELLINGHAM – Town resident and Vietnam veteran William Vicini will be the grand marshal of Bellingham’s 146th Memorial Day parade and ceremony May 21.
Inspector-Instructor Sgt. Major Matthew Fortune of the 1st Battalion 25th Marine Regiment will be this year’s keynote speaker.
A native of Ashland, Vicini joined the Air Force in 1964 and served in Vietnam from 1966-1967 where he was assigned to the 14th Air Commando wing in Nha Trang. He left military service in 1968 as a staff sergeant.
Vicini, 72, a Bellingham resident for 49 years, joined the Milford Chapter of the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) in 2007 and since that time has held all positions at the chapter level. Vicini’s speech on May 21 will focus on the DAV’s mission and its programs that help veterans.
Sgt. Major Fortune was promoted to his current rank in 2015 and his awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, Navy Commendation Medal, and Navy Achievement Medal with two gold stars.
The theme of this year’s Memorial Day parade and ceremony program is the 100th anniversary of the United States’ entry into World War I, which occurred on April 6, 1917.
The parade will begin at the Memorial Middle School at 1 p.m. and proceed down Route 126 to the center
of town. The procession will stop at the World War I Memorial in front of Town Hall for a rifle salute and placement of a wreath, which will be followed with the playing of Taps. The parade route will end at the town common, where the program will begin with an invocation, the National Anthem and the Gettysburg Address.
The ceremony will feature music provided by the Senior Center Chorus, the Bellingham High School chorus and soloist Joseph Oliver, a senior at Bellingham High School.
Closing ceremonies will include the reading of the names of Bellingham residents who made the ultimate sacrifice in the service of their country during the Civil War, World War I, World War II, Korea and Vietnam. The names will be read by members of the Bellingham High School Band. In addition, the names of Bellingham veterans who died since last Memorial Day will also be read.
Amazing Grace will be played by the Brian Boru Bagpipe Band, the Quaboag Highlanders Bagpipe Band and the Old Colony Highlanders Pipe Band, followed by a rifle volley, Taps’ by the Bellingham High Band and a closing prayer.
“Memorial Day is a time to pause and honor the memory of our servicemen and women for protecting us,’’ said Jim Hastings, chairman of the Memorial and Veterans Day Committee for the last 11 years. “If it weren’t for those who made the ultimate sacrifice, we’d be living in a different type of United States. They’re the ones who’ve enabled us to enjoy the freedoms we have today.’’
Hastings urges any veteran who would like to march to contact him or just arrive at the Middle School. Anyone who knows of a Bellingham resident who enlisted in the military since last year is asked to contact Hastings immediately at (508) 966-0364 so names can be added to the War Memorial to recognize their service.
Besides Hastings, the Memorial Day Committee includes Marilyn Fuller, Sam Cowell, Paula Saliba, Kirk Crawford, Allen Crawford, Melinda Crawford, Debra Parker and Wade Parker.