Morris County to Livestream Annual Memorial Day Observance May 26 2021
Published on May 21, 2021
Please Tune in to Our Facebook Livestream On May 26, 2021, Wednesday, at Noon!
The Morris County Board of County Commissioners is inviting everyone to join them virtually in their annual Morris County Memorial Day Observance ceremony on the front lawn of the Morris County Courthouse in Morristown.
The event will begin at noon and include a presentation by the board members of the Morris County Distinguished Military Service Medals to several local veterans. Lawn access is being restricted to invited guests and media because of state COVID-19 distancing guidelines that remain in place. However, everyone is welcome to tune in to our Facebook Livestream of the ceremony.
Among those participating in this year's program are the Morris County Sheriff’s Office Joint Honor Guard and the Morris County 96th Basic Police Training Class Flag Detail.
The keynote speaker is Vivyen Ray, who spent 22 years as a U.S. Army Reservist, Sergeant First Class, and is now County College of Morris Vice President of Human Resources and Labor Relation.
The Morris County Distinguished Military Service Medals to be awarded are unique to Morris County and feature the county seal encircled with the words, “Morris County Distinguished Military Service,” on the front. This year, they have been modified to represent the board's name change, under state law, from the historic title of Board of Chosen Freeholders to the Board of County Commissioners. An outline of the county and the American flag is on the back of the medals, and those presented to more current veterans include the words, “Morris County Commissioners Military Commemorative.”
There are distinct medals issued to veterans of three specific conflicts: "World War II Commemorative," "Korean War Commemorative" and "Vietnam War Commemorative." Each medal’s striped ribbons bear the colors representing the specific conflict during which the veteran served.
Since the Commissioners began the medal program in 2000, more than 10,000 medals have been presented to veterans or to their surviving family members.