Photos by Eugene Driscoll
Gus Williams.
Gus Williams is 83, but age did not stop him from placing flags on the graves of veterans buried in Derby.
“I’ve been putting them on since the ’80s, but it’s been going on long before that,” Williams, a U.S. Army veteran from the Korean War era, said of the tradition that happens before Memorial Day every year.
Williams has been Commander of the John H. Collins Post 24 American Legion for 27 years. He was one of about 30 volunteers who placed 2,000 U.S. flags on graves at four Derby cemeteries.
“I look forward to it every year. Every veteran who served his country, defending our freedoms, this is in honor of their service,” Williams said.
The group, which included veterans, Elks Lodge members, volunteer firefighters and citizens, started Wednesday morning at Oak Cliff Cemetery on Hawthorne Avenue. The start time was 9 a.m., but dozens of flags had already been placed by 8:45 a.m.
“This shows we didn’t forget. It’s out of respect,” said Paul V. Varsanik, the Adjutant at American Legion Post #24.
Paul Varsanik (back to camera) talks to Cassi Curtis and her father, Kelly.
Mayor Rich Dziekan, himself a veteran, was on hand to mark graves, too.
“It’s great that people come out to honor the great men and woman who served their country,” Dziekan said. “Freedom isn’t free.”
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The Derby-Shelton Memorial Day Parade is scheduled for 9 a.m. Monday. It starts in Shelton before coming over the Derby-Shelton bridge into Derby.
A respectful observance will be held the day before the parade, at 7:30 p.m. Sunday at Shelton High School. The names of each veteran who has died in the past year will be read aloud.
Then, after the Monday parade, Derby and Shelton will unveil a restored Civil War monument on the Derby Green. Final details on the ceremony will be released Thursday.
Click here for a rundown of Memorial Day activities.
