Services held to honor befallen

MARQUETTE — We are reminded today that freedom isn’t free by celebrating Memorial Day, which honors the brave men and women who died in battle for our freedom.

American Legion Marquette Post 44 held two services in Marquette this morning.

Several people from toddlers to grandmothers gathered at Park Cemetery for the first service. Also in attendance were some special guests: veterans from the D.J. Jacobetti Home for Veterans.

“It means everything to me. It’s the pride I take in being able to now, as a veteran from the service, to help our veterans,” said American Legion 44 Post Commander Tom Ranta. “We had Jacobetti members there. To see those guys come out and women come out, it’s a great honor and I feel privileged to be a part of it.”

The second service was held at Holy Cross Cemetery on Wright Street.

“We want to honor both cemeteries we’ve got all the little flags on the veterans graves, we put those out on Wednesday and Thursday of last week,” said American Legion 44 Post Commander Tom Ranta. “We had legion members, along with a lot of youth groups; the boy scouts, cub scouts, stuff like that, that came out and put flags out. We want to make sure we do not forget this day.”

The son of a Vietnam veteran passed along a Quilt of Valor to his father at the Holy Cross ceremony. The purpose of the quilt is to cover veterans touched by the struggles of war with comfort.

Ranta said the Memorial Ceremony was an appropriate occasion for such an award.