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Penn Yan Memorial Day events set

The Chronicle Express - 5/16/2018

Korean War Veteran Donald Habber field, 86, will serve as Grand Marshall of the 2018 Memorial Day Parade to be held Monday, May 28 in Penn Yan.

The parade will step off at 10 a.m. from the comer of East Main and Lake Streets and march north up Main Street through downtown to the Yates County Courthouse Park.

Parade line-up will take place at 9:30 a.m. on East Main Street between Lake and Henry Streets. Parade chairman Andy Swarth out asks that all groups wishing to be in the parade contact him at 315-595-6130 no later than May 27.

Swarth out encourages all veterans to join the parade. Veterans who cannot march will be provided rides along the parade route.

The annual Memorial Day ceremonies will be in the Courthouse Park following the parade.

Master of Ceremonies will be First Sergeant Mark Moon of the U.S.

Marine Corps. The featured speaker will be the Hon. Leigh MacKerchar, Mayor of the Village of Penn Yan.

MacKerchar is a U.S.

Army Veteran. He served from 1973-1976, and was an Administrative Specialist and Office Manager at the Pentagon.

After the fall of Siagon, MacKerchar worked on a program assigning refugees with military sponsors.

After returning from service, he worked for the U.S. Postal Service and was Penn Yan Postmaster. In 1998, he was elected Mayor and served until 2002. Again in 2014, he was elected Mayor. His current term in office continues to 2022.

Mayor MacKerchar is the son of a decorated World War II Veteran, John MacKerchar, who earned the prestigious Silver Star Medal.

Grand Marshall Habber field enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in 1951, and received his basic training at Sampson Air Force Base in nearby Seneca County. He then was trained in the field of cooking and baking.

He spent the next four years as an Air Force Cook, first at Fairchild Air Force Base in Washington State, and then at Parks Airbase.

When taking his discharge physical, it was determined he had contracted TB and was held in service for an additional year for treatment.

He was discharged as an Airman First Class with a total of six years' service.

The ceremonies will also include the reading by U.S. Air Force veteran Carrie Ahearn of the honor roll of all Yates County veterans who have passed on since Memorial Day of 2017.