The weekend storm had faded to morning mist on Monday, May 31, when a small crowd of about 20 hardy, well-bundled souls gathered at two sites in Bozrah on Memorial Day.

Organized by American Legion Post 138 with help from Legion members in nearby Norwich, the ceremony began at 10 a.m. at the World War I Memorial at the corner of Fitchville Road and Bozrah Street Extension.

There the flag was lowered to half staff, a wreath was laid to commemorate the nation’s fallen and Taps was sounded by Debra Coats, who serves the nearby Fields Memorial School as band and choral director.

Following the brief ceremony at the World War I Memorial, the group moved to Veterans Memorial Park, opposite the Bozrah Town Hall. The flag there was also lowered to half staff, another wreath was laid and American Legion member Ray Barber introduced Post 138 Commander Jim Robertson and Bozrah First Selectman Carl Zorn, both of whom spoke briefly.

They were followed by guest speaker Jon Pierce, submarine service veteran and Veteran Employment Representative for New London County at the Connecticut Department of Labor.

Pierce gave a brief history of Memorial Day, which began as Decoration Day after the Civil War, when citizens adorned the graves of veterans with flowers and flags. Although celebrated in many places in honor of all those who fell in American wars, Memorial Day was officially declared a national holiday by Congress in 1971, the date being set as the last Monday in May.

Pierce reminded the assembly that “it is important to continue sharing the story” of American lives lost in battle, quoting Spanish philosopher George Santayana: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”

To close the ceremony, Coats again sounded Taps. Everyone went home with a small American flag handed out by American Legion members.

Mary Elizabeth Lang is a resident of Bozrah.