The annual Memorial Day parade will be held Monday, May 29 starting at 10 a.m. at Main Street and Osprey Avenue and will travel westward to lower Main Street, where it will end at Gulfstream Avenue. At approximately 11 a.m., a ceremony will be held at Chaplain J.D. Hamel Park.

This year’s keynote speaker will be retired Navy Capt. Richard Petrucci. He was a naval aviator for 25 years with four squadron tours prior to retiring in 1986. He joined Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company in Marietta, Georgia as senior engineer, then moved to the Sarasota area where he became the Sarasota Military Academy’s first math and science department head. He has accrued over 7,800 hours total pilot time and was awarded the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award for 50 years of flying without an accident.

The Memorial Day holiday honors those who died during military service. We are grateful to those who served for our freedoms and the sacrifices they and their families made for our nation.

Please note: City administrative offices will be closed May 29 for the national holiday. Garbage/recycling/yard waste will be collected as usual.