Coronavirus News: Virtual ceremonies held for Memorial Day

25 May 2020, 09:46

NEW YORK (WABC) -- This year's Memorial Day paid tribute not only to those who died on the battlefield but also those who have fallen during the coronavirus pandemic.

Many of the usual Memorial Day gatherings were either canceled or curtailed - mindful of the pandemic that has already killed nearly 100,000 people in the U.S.

The annual wreath-laying ceremony at the Intrepid will be virtual this year. Even in a pandemic- they're not going to let the day pass without paying tribute to those who've lost their lives defending our country.

The Intrepid ceremony will be streamed live here. A number of other Fleet Week virtual events were also planned throughout the day.

In New Jersey, Woodland Park in Passiac County held virtual ceremonies on its Facebook page.

The New Jersey Vietnam Veterans Memorial and Vietnam Era Museum will stream a ceremony at 11:00 a.m. on the museum's Facebook and Instagram pages.

On Long Island in Nassau County, a virtual ceremony and wreath-laying was held Monday morning.

"We are honoring our fallen with a car parade from Veterans Memorial Coliseum to the Eisenhower Memorial Park Veterans Memorial. It's going to be beautiful. People don't come. We are going to keep it for our veterans. We are going to have a very solemn ceremony with a wreath laying, but you can follow it on Facebook," Nassau County Executive Laura Curran said ahead of the event.

On Sunday, a convoy of military vehicles from the Museum of American Armor gathered at Long Island National Cemetery. They arrived as several were there to honor their loved ones, saying they're finding inspiration from them as we battle through this pandemic.

Veterans buried at Long Island National Cemetery were honored by a convoy of World War II armored vehicles on Sunday.

Yonkers in Westchester County hosted a virtual Memorial Day ceremony with Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano via Facebook Live and Memorial Day Motorcade with military and first responder vehicles

The Brooklyn Memorial Day parade was canceled, but they also held a vehicles-only caravan.

"It's something we're upset about, but we understand," said Raymond Aalbue, chairman of the United Military Veterans of Kings County, which usually puts on the parade in Brooklyn.

There's "no reason to put anybody in harm's way," he said. Still, "it's really cutting quick to the heart of all the veterans."

The convoy of 10 cars left from the Bay Ridge spot where the parade usually starts and headed to the Brooklyn veterans affairs hospital, where participants will line up next to their cars for a salute and a wreath-laying ceremony.

In Queens, the group behind the Little Neck-Douglaston Memorial Day Parade will have a few people at the site where they normally end their parade, said executive director Victor Mimoni. One person will lay a wreath, another will do a flag ceremony and a third will play "Taps" while some others watch, he said, a far cry from the crowds that usually attend the event. But "we felt the need to do something," Mimoni said.

On Staten Island, another convoy of cars, led by motorcycles, will take off in a procession after a wreath-laying ceremony at Hero Park.

The toll of the virus on military veterans has been particularly harsh. They are older, have underlying health problems, and many reside in facilities that have been breeding grounds for the disease. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, more than 1,000 veterans have been killed by the coronavirus. That does not include hundreds more who have died in state-run veterans homes, including hard-hit facilities in New Jersey, Massachusetts and Louisiana.

It's making the situation even more painful for the relatives of those veterans who have died from the virus.

Robert Hopp was one of at least 79 residents of a veterans home in Paramus, New Jersey, to die from COVID-19, making the state-run facility one of the nation's worst hot spots for the virus. He served two and a half tours during the Vietnam War and received a Purple Heart after he was hit with enemy fire while in a helicopter. Everyone else on board the chopper died, but Hopp managed to climb into the pilot's seat and fly to safety.

After being hospitalized recently for diabetic complications, his health deteriorated quickly and he died in April. He was 70 years old. His family is at a loss about how they will mark the occasion.

"We couldn't even have a funeral for him yet," said stepson J.J. Brania-Hopp. "There's not really anything we can do right now. All we'll probably do is talk about him, maybe go for a walk out in the sun."

Nationally, events also changed. President Trump only participated in the wreath-laying at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery, foregoing the traditional speech at the hallowed burial ground in Virginia.

He is expected to speak later at Baltimore's Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine. It's where a poem, written after a huge American flag was hoisted to celebrate an important victory over the British during the War of 1812, became "The Star-Spangled Banner.

In Queens, a veteran took time out to pay tribute to the lives lost due to the coronavirus pandemic.

John Christ performed 'Taps' - a bugle call typically played at military funerals - on the steps of his home.

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