Just because a tradition gets formally canceled by the community doesn’t mean the spirit of the people can’t prevail. Tradition for half a century has seen U.S. Medal of Honor Recipient James McCloughan of South Haven lead the annual Memorial Day Parade in that community.
The formal parade and cemetery service event were canceled by the City of South Haven this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, but that didn’t stop McCloughan and some of his military friends for one minute.
Veterans in South Haven, led by the Medal of Honor Recipient, did not allow the shutdown of the formal events to discourage them from paying their respects this Memorial Day Monday morning.
This would have been the 50th consecutive year that McCloughan, who lives in South Haven, was slated to lead the parade. Friends however report that he was not to be deterred so he decided to make the mile-long march through the downtown to Lakeview Cemetery on his own to pay tribute to those who have paid the ultimate price.
When members of the American Legion Post 49 became aware of his plan, some members of the Legion Post’s Honor Guard elected to join him.
Later, veterans gathered respecting social distancing at the Legion Post for the playing of taps and gun volley. Fortunately, that managed to gain the attention of nearby Black River boaters and people heading to the beach for the day.
The photo of Jim McCloughan marching through downtown South Haven this morning is courtesy of Cherie McCloughan, and the cemetery and taps photos are courtesy of Tom Renner.
