Troy Lions Club to present 2024 Memorial Day Candle Light Services
By Josh Jones
Times Tribune Editor
TROY — The ultimate sacrifice, these words resonate inside the hearts of family and friends of veterans who gave everything including their lives to ensure our freedoms in the United States and the Troy Lions Club is asking the community to join them in remembering their bravery this Memorial Day.
The Troy Lions Club will host its annual Memorial Day Candle Light Services starting at 7:30 p.m. Monday, May 27, at the Tri-Township Park Field of Honor and Service. Chairman of the event and Lions Club Board member Tim Greenfield explained that this marks the second year the Lions Club is hosting the event, which was previously hosted by the American Legion, who asked the Lions Club to take the reins. He explained that this year’s format is different.
“This is the first time we are doing a candlelight service,” Greenfield said. “Normally everything is done during the day time, but we thought we would mix it up this year and try to do a candlelight service at night and make it a little bit different than the normal services that we do. We are lighting the candles at each of the memorial stones, which honors all those who gave their lives in the various wars that we have been fighting. We will also have them along the wall where the U.S. flags are flying.”
The Color Guard will be conducted by Troop 8038B and 8038G. During the services music will be performed by the Troy Community Band.
“The Troy Community will start playing right after we open the service and they will play for about an hour,” Greenfield said. “They have a whole variety of music, memorial type music, military type music. They are all on board.”
The opening and closing prayer will be conducted by Pastor Kent D. Wilson of CrossView Church.
This year’s speaker will be Greenfield. He is a Vietnam Veteran and served in the United States Army in Vietnam in 1966 and 1967. He was the chairman of the committee that built the Tri-Township Park Field of Honor and Service. Greenfield also served in various different positions on the Tri-Township Park District board for 19 years and 10 years as park director.
“You have Memorial Day and you have Veterans Day. Memorial Day is probably the most important day for military personnel and service organizations to honor those who have paid the ultimate price, given their lives in combat for the service of this country and it should be honored as the number one day,” Greenfield said. “We honor all the veterans on Veterans Day, but Memorial Day really honors all of those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country.”
The ceremony will conclude with a candle lighting by Troop 8038B and 8038G.
The event is free and open to the public. For more information people may visit the “Troy Lions Club” Facebook page.
