With parade canceled, Mount Vernon honors fallen heroes virtually on Memorial Day

MOUNT VERNON – When the coronavirus pandemic forced the City of Mount Vernon to cancel its annual Memorial Day parade earlier this month, Mayor Matt Starr began thinking of alternative options.

How could the city honor those who gave their lives to protect the United States, while also adhering to social distancing guidelines?

He quickly came to a realization.

“You know what?” he recalled thinking. “We have a filmmaker in City Hall.”

Before Starr became Mount Vernon’s mayor in January, he spent years as a film producer. Starr served as the director of Kokosing River Productions, an award-winning film production company based in Knox County.

So, when the opportunity presented itself, Starr knew what to do. He’d direct a 30-minute film to commemorate those who paid the ultimate sacrifice.

“If I was an engineer, we would take advantage of my engineering background,” Starr said with a chuckle. “But since I’m a filmmaker…”

The film, titled “A Medley of Remembrance – Memorial Day 2020,” was published on the city’s website, YouTube channel and Facebook page Monday. It features:

A rifle salute and the playing of “Taps” by the Knox County Joint Veterans Council;
A playing of the national anthem by local musicians Kelly and Kevin Lauth;
A recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance by Knox County Veterans Services Commissioner George Curry;
A prayer by Pastor Jon Whisner, of the Church at Chapel Hill;
A reading of personal essays on the meaning of Memorial Day by five Knox County Career Center Air Force Junior ROTC cadets (Noah Hagner, Steven Kollas, Wyatt Wagner, Harrison Lingel and Shyla Rizzo);
A playing of “Patriotic Melody” by Megan, Leslie and Christine Bell from Gay Street United Methodist Church;
A playing of “His Hands” by the praise team at Central Christian Church;
And a playing of “The Lord Bless You and Keep You” by the Mount Vernon Nazarene University Collegians Chorale and Alumni.

Starr directed the film with the help of the city’s Patriotic Memorial Committee, which plans the parade each year. The committee coordinated the production of the film, and Starr used his shooting and editing expertise to do the rest.

While Starr said he was disappointed the city could not host a parade this year, he was glad to be able to honor its fallen heroes in another way.

“There’s no reason why we still can’t take the time to remember,” Starr said May 16, after wrapping up the opening scene at Mound View Cemetery. “And obviously, given the social distancing, we’re able to do some video productions.”

The committee thought about doing a reverse parade, Starr said, but concluded it could not do so while adhering to social distancing guidelines. The Ohio Department of Health has asked residents to remain six feet apart, and has also banned large gatherings, in order to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, which has killed nearly 2,000 Ohioans as of Monday.

Kevin Henthorn, executive director of the Knox County Veterans Services Office, played an active role in the making of the film. He said the parade’s cancelation was “a bummer, because you always want to seize that opportunity” to honor local citizens who have given their lives to protect the country. But he was thrilled that the city was able to quickly coordinate an alternative plan.

“We hope that it really brings a lot of honor and is a nice tribute to the families and, of course, those that aren’t with us,” said Henthorn, who emceed the virtual ceremony. “[It’s a] pretty cool idea.”

Both Henthorn and Starr noted that, unlike a parade, this video will live on forever. It will be available for anyone to watch online, and will serve as a reminder of how Mount Vernon honored its fallen veterans despite the challenging circumstances.

“What we all kind of liked is it puts a time stamp on our local history – how we were able to adapt and still move forward with remembering our lost military members, in spite of the coronavirus,” Starr said. “We still found a way to do this and connect virtually.”

The video can also be watched by people outside of Mount Vernon, Henthorn said, which could serve as positive regional publicity for the city.

“Everybody’s gonna be able to watch this video…” he said. “This is gonna be something that anybody can tune into and see what Mount Vernon, Ohio did for their vets. So it’s pretty neat.”

In between patriotic anthems and hymns, local Junior ROTC cadets read stirring personal essays in the video about what Memorial Day means to them.

Hagner, a senior at the Career Center, wrote that “we are a nation that has become united under the common cause of freedom.” That freedom came at a cost, he said.

“Repeatedly, men and women from different peoples and traditions fought for what they believed in: the freedoms and rights of the United States…” Hagner said. “The Americans who died in any of our nation’s conflicts are heroes. They laid down their life for you.”

Kollas, a junior, spoke about the history of Memorial Day, which began in the years following the Civil War as a way to honor those who had lost their lives in battle. The name has since changed – it was originally known as “Decoration Day” – but the meaning has not.

“These fallen heroes should never be forgotten…” Kollas said. “Everything we have, we have because of the brave souls who had the courage to fight, even though many never returned.”

Wagner, also a junior, noted that people don’t often think about the sacrifices that were made for their everyday liberties.

“Memorial Day is important,” he said, “as it reminds citizens of our nation what exactly happened behind the front lines.”

Lingel, a sophomore, spoke wisely about freedom and its cost.

“The high price of freedom is a cost paid by a brave and courageous few…” he said. “We must always remember: our flag does not fly because the wind moves it, it flies with the last breath of each soldier who died protecting it.”

And Rizzo, a senior, wrote her passage in the form of a poem. She spoke about her relationship with those who sacrificed their lives, centuries ago, for the freedoms she enjoys today.

“They stayed so that I could live. So that we – you and me – could live…” she said. “They never knew me and still loved me, keeping the hands of death so far that even I couldn’t see.”

Even when the city had to cancel its Memorial Day parade this year, Starr said the Patriotic Memorial Committee never lost hope. It vowed to find a way to celebrate the holiday – even if it meant producing a multi-part commemorative film in less than a month.

“We’re not having a parade, we’re not allowed. So this was the next best thing, at least, that we thought we could do,” Starr said. “We’ll make it a memorable experience in a different way.”