Memorial Day activities in Ames

Ames Memorial Day parade 

A Memorial Day parade, sponsored by the Ames Patriotic Council, will start at 10:30 a.m. Monday morning at City Hall.

Anyone, especially any veteran, wishing to walk or ride in the parade is welcome. Parade participants should gather at 10 a.m. on Fifth Street between Clark and Pearle Avenues or in the parking lot on the west side of City Hall.

The parade will proceed north along Clarke Avenue and then east along Ninth Street to the Ames Municipal Cemetery, arriving before the program starts at 11 a.m.

Due to the solemn nature of the Memorial Day holiday, the Patriotic Council asks that parade participants refrain from distributing candy or promotional literature along the parade route.

Ames Memorial Day program

The Memorial Day program starts at 11 a.m. Monday, May 27 at the Ames Municipal Cemetery following the Memorial Day parade. The program will kick off with a welcome from Ames Mayor Pro Tem Amber Corrieri and American Legion Post 37 Commander Jay Sisco. Tim Gartin, president of the Ames Patriotic Council, will introduce the program.

Retired U.S. Navy and Army National Guard veteran and Ames High School graduate Stanley Elliot is the featured speaker for the Ames Memorial Day program.

A color guard from the Des Moines Composite Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol will present the colors. The Ames Municipal Band, under the direction of Mike Golemo, will play, and Jim DeHoet will sing. A list of the local veterans interred since last Memorial Day will be read, followed by a salute from the American Legion Honor Guard.

American Legion Post 37 will provide lunch at the post, 225 Main St.

In case of rain, the Memorial Day parade will be canceled. The program will move indoors to the Ames City Hall Auditorium and will start at 11 a.m. The event will also be streamed on the Ames Patriotic Council’s Facebook page and its website.

In addition, the American Legion Honor Guard will render honors at Story Memorial Cemetery at 9:30 a.m. and at Ontario Cemetery at 10 a.m.