It’s been a couple years since the town held a Memorial Day parade.

And unlike prior years, the 2022 Memorial Day parade in Barrington is being organized by a group other than the Barrington United Veterans Council. In March, the town council voted to give organizational powers to Barrington Town Manager Phil Hervey, who has since worked to form a committee to handle the duties.

“We’re building the committee now,” Hervey said during an interview earlier this month. “We have reached out and invited the UVC to be part of it, but it doesn’t appear that they’re interested this year. The invitation is still open. They’d be on the committee, and help plan it out. They bring the experience. They bring all that knowledge. They bring the connections, and the history. They have the history.

“I was hopeful. It’s up to the UVC. We really can’t make them. It sounds like they’re doing their own thing.”

While the BUVC is planning to hold its own Memorial Day ceremony at Victory Gate, the town continues to put together a separate observance and parade. 

A post on the town’s website shared some of the details for the upcoming events.

“…This year will be similar to past Memorial Days: a solemn ceremony recalling the departed at Victory Gate at Barrington High School, followed by a celebratory parade from the High School to Town Hall, and capped off by a formal ceremony and remarks to the day at Town Hall.

“The Committee envisions a program that represents the core of what veterans have fought for, and that Memorial Day reflect the ‘life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness’ enshrined in the Declaration of Independence. We also want to take the time to celebrate some of the many facets of our community that Barrington’s own service members sacrificed so much to protect or contributed to upon returning home.

“This year the event will come out of hibernation and evolve again, moving more fully from an event run partly ‘for’ the community to one that is entirely run ‘by’ the community, as the Town assumes direct responsibility for this traditional public observance.”

Hervey said the town planned to send letters to 500-plus veterans in town inviting them to participate in the event and parade. Hervey also said event MC, Navy Commander Scott Douglas, had also hoped to reach out to young ROTC students in town or those who plan on enlisting in the military following graduation. 

“I’m excited to see the parade come back,” Douglas said during a recent interview. “I’ve been pretty invigorated by the discussions we’ve had.”

Douglas said he was excited about the opportunity for greater diversity with the events — he mentioned an example, having the Boy Scouts raise one flag while having the Girl Scouts raise another. 

The parade will be organized into four divisions: Military honor, recognition, civic pride and community. Any groups interested in participating in the parade are encouraged to download the application from the town’s website. The deadline to submit an application is May 6.  

More information

Following is the schedule of activities planning for this year’s Memorial Day in Barrington:

9 a.m.: Ceremony at Victory Gate, Barrington High School 

9:30 to 10 a.m.: Begin lining up for the parade at the high school

10 a.m.: Parade begins; it will follow the same route as prior years, officials said

11 a.m.: Ceremony at Barrington Town Hall