The West Virginia Memorial Day Committee, Inc. is excited to announce a change in the traditional parade route that will help ensure the safety of participants and spectators alike, as well as help the committee continue to grow the nation’s longest, continuous running Memorial Day Parade. 
Beginning with this year’s event, participants will lineup at Grafton High School and the parade will officially begin at the intersection of Yates Ave. and Beech St. The parade will travel across Memorial Bridge and through town before turning right onto the U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Frederick Burdett Warder Memorial Bridge on Bridge St, making another right onto Front St. The procession will travel the length of Front St. before making a right onto the South Side Bridge and continuing up Beech St and onto Walnut St., ending at the hallowed grounds of the Grafton National Cemetery.
While the committee understands that the traditional route has been in place for over 150 years, they ensure the core value and tradition of the parade will remain in place. The focus of the parade has been and will always be to honor the sacrifice of the fallen American heroes. However, as the parade continues to grow, changes must take place to, first and foremost, ensure the safety of participants and spectators. Not only will the alteration provide a safer place for participants to stage, it allows all participants to be centralized to one location, and it also provides more space as vehicular entries continue to grow.
The committee understands that the community may have concerns centering around the altered route, and to hear and address those apprehensions, the West Virginia Memorial Day Committee will be hosting a public forum in September. Once a date had been secured, it will be made available to the public, as well as a way for citizens to submit their questions, comments and concerns.
The dedicated group of volunteers that comprises the West Virginia Memorial Day Committee holds very dear to their hearts the meaning of the parade, and we will continue to uphold the tradition of honoring the ultimate sacrifice of our services members, as well as being the longest continuous running Memorial Day parade in the nation.
The committee is always welcoming fresh faces to join their ranks. The dedicated group of volunteers meets the first Monday of each month. Anyone wishing to be involved in the planning of the parade may attend the meetings, held at 7 p.m. in the Grafton City Council Chambers, located at 1 West Main St., Grafton.
The West Virginia Memorial Day Committee’s next meeting will be held on Monday, September 9, due to the Labor Day holiday.