Mystic — Thanks to quick action by Stonington town officials and flexibility from the state Department of Transportation, the century-old Memorial Day parade will go on as scheduled Monday.

The annual parade, which is organized by the Veterans of Foreign Wars Hugo A. Simonelli Post 3263, had been canceled after the VFW missed a DOT permitting deadline.

But the parade is back on track after the first selectman’s office and the police department intervened to get state permission.

“The community rallied. This would not have happened without the first selectman, the police chief, and the State of Connecticut, definitely. They had to grant an exception to policy, and we appreciate all entities that worked together on it,” said post commander and first year parade chairman William Landry.

Landry said he had been focused on organizing and getting local approvals from Stonington and Groton officials and had not realized he needed state DOT approval for the parade, which runs along Route 1, a state road, from Water Street to the VFW post at 60 Stonington Road.

By the time the VFW approached Stonington for approval, the 90-day deadline to receive DOT approval before the date of the event had passed. The VFW had no choice but to cancel the parade that honors the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. armed forces.

Landry said the cancellation was a blow to the veterans’ organization, and the members were thrilled when they received word Monday that the DOT had agreed to allow the parade to go on.

“The parade is well established, and the only time I know of that it didn’t happen was during COVID, so we definitely were glad that it is able to happen again,” Landry said.

Stonington Deputy Police Chief Todd Olson said Tuesday that the police department became aware of the issue May 11, and Stonington First Selectwoman Danielle Chesebrough and Stonington Police Chief Jay DelGrosso immediately began working as a team to resolve the issue.

DelGrosso assured DOT officials that his police department could handle all traffic and safety concerns on the state road and asked them to approve the parade.

“These events take cooperation by many people and organizations, and they cannot proceed unless we are all communicating and working together. We are grateful for our partners,” said Olson.

Josh Morgan, DOT spokesperson and communications manager, said the DOT and Stonington police worked together to review plans for the parade to determine whether there was construction or other work scheduled that would cause a safety concern.

“Seeing that there was none of that on the calendar, we were able to approve the permit, so they can go ahead with this event, which means so much to the community, so we just wish everyone has a safe and enjoyable parade,” Morgan said.

On Tuesday, Chesebrough credited strong relationships and partnerships with the DOT for its decision to allow the parade to go on.

“We opened good lines of communication; we built trust in each other so that when these things happen, everyone can do their part and just hit the ground running,” she said.

“It made us, as a veteran’s organization, feel positive being able to finish putting it together and have it happen, able to honor those who have gone before us that have made the ultimate sacrifice, and reminding people what Memorial Day is. It’s not just a day off from school or work, but as they’re having that hot dog or that hamburger, to take a moment to realize why they’re able to have that because of those that have gone before us,” said Landry.

The parade, which begins at 2 p.m., will be followed by a barbeque, face painting and opportunities for children to see and touch military vehicles at the end of the parade route at the VFW post.

The VFW is now racing against time to complete plans for the parade, and Landry said anyone interested in participating should reach out to the VFW or email him at will1922003@yahoo.com.