Internewscast Journal
  • Home
  • US News
  • Local News
  • Health
  • People
  • Guest Post
  • Support Our Cause
Internewscast Journal
  • Home
  • US News
  • Local News
  • Health
  • People
  • Guest Post
  • Support Our Cause
Home Local news PHOTOS: Central Florida’s Memorial Day Events Pay Tribute to Fallen Heroes
  • Local news

PHOTOS: Central Florida’s Memorial Day Events Pay Tribute to Fallen Heroes

    PHOTOS: Memorial Day events in Central Florida ‘respect and honor those who fell’
    Up next
    King Charles and Queen Camilla touch down in Ottawa ahead of formally opening parliament
    King Charles and Queen Camilla Arrive in Ottawa to Officially Open Parliament
    Published on 26 May 2025
    Author
    Internewscast
    Tags
    • and,
    • Brevard County,
    • Bushnell,
    • Cape Canaveral,
    • central,
    • Clermont,
    • DAY,
    • Events,
    • fell,
    • Florida,
    • honor,
    • lake county,
    • Leesburg,
    • memorial,
    • memorial day,
    • military,
    • orange county,
    • Orlando,
    • Photos,
    • respect,
    • Serving Those Who Served,
    • Sumter County,
    • those,
    • who
    Share this @internewscast.com
    FacebookXRedditPinterest

    ORLANDO, Fla. – This Memorial Day, as a veteran, I dedicated myself to attending as many events and ceremonies associated with the holiday as possible, outside of my usual office duties.

    While the federal holiday is honored on the last Monday in May, events in Central Florida spanned Friday through Monday.

    According to the United States Census, more than 1 million men and women have died in military service since the Civil War.

    I started this project at the city of Orlando’s Memorial Day Commemoration Ceremony on Friday, May 23, at Greenwood Cemetery.

    Orlando

    The city of Orlando’s Memorial Day Commemoration Ceremony at Greenwood Cemetery on Friday, May 23 . (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Flags placed on grave sites during the city of Orlando’s Memorial Day Commemoration Ceremony at Greenwood Cemetery on Friday, May 23 . (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Members of the Orlando Fire Department and Orlando Police Department color guard at the city of Orlando’s Memorial Day Commemoration Ceremony at Greenwood Cemetery on Friday, May 23 . (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)

    On Saturday, May 24, I traveled to Leesburg for their Memorial Day event at Veterans Memorial Park. There, I had the privilege of meeting 80-year-old Marine Corps and Vietnam veteran George Wanberg. He shared why it was important for him to pay tribute to his fellow servicemen who sacrificed their lives for the nation.

    “We need to respect and honor those who fell,” Wanberg said. “People have been dying for this country since its founding in 1775, and if we don’t honor them now, an entire generation might be forgotten. Our young kids need to see what we’re doing today.”

    Leesburg

    Attendees at the Leesburg Memorial Day program on Saturday, May 24, at Veterans Memorial Park. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Attendees at the Leesburg Memorial Day program on Saturday, May 24, at Veterans Memorial Park. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Attendees at the Leesburg Memorial Day program on Saturday, May 24, at Veterans Memorial Park. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Congressman Daniel Webster speaks at the Leesburg Memorial Day program on Saturday, May 24, at Veterans Memorial Park. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Attendees at the Leesburg Memorial Day program on Saturday, May 24, at Veterans Memorial Park. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Attendees at the Leesburg Memorial Day program on Saturday, May 24, at Veterans Memorial Park. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Attendees at the Leesburg Memorial Day program on Saturday, May 24, at Veterans Memorial Park. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Attendees at the Leesburg Memorial Day program on Saturday, May 24, at Veterans Memorial Park. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Attendees at the Leesburg Memorial Day program on Saturday, May 24, at Veterans Memorial Park. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)

    On Sunday, May 25, I visited the Florida National Cemetery in Sumter County.

    Nikki Balasch, event coordinator with the Flags for Florida’s Fallen of Florida National Cemetery, gathered with the 2,743 volunteers on the morning before Memorial Day to place flags every grave site – all 244,000 of them. It’s an impressive feat that is accomplished in just over an hour at the cemetery that covers over 500 acres.

    Totes filled with flags were placed around the cemetery, and after Taps was played at 9 a.m., volunteers started their mission, placing flags at the front of each grave site.

    But the tribute didn’t end there.

    “Each name is said aloud and they are each thanked for their service, so that no here is ever forgotten,” Balasch said.

    Like many volunteers, Balasch has a special connection to the cemetery – her father, Charles Bruce, who served in Vietnam while in the U.S. Army, is buried in section 626.

    “He’s the reason why I do this,” an emotional Balasch said. “He’s my hero.”

    Bushnell

    Around 2,700 volunteers gathered on Sunday, May 25, to plant American flags at the estimated 244,000 grave sites at the Florida National Cemetery in Sumter County. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Around 2,700 volunteers gathered on Sunday, May 25, to plant American flags at the estimated 244,000 grave sites at the Florida National Cemetery in Sumter County. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Around 2,700 volunteers gathered on Sunday, May 25, to plant American flags at the estimated 244,000 grave sites at the Florida National Cemetery in Sumter County. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Around 2,700 volunteers gathered on Sunday, May 25, to plant American flags at the estimated 244,000 grave sites at the Florida National Cemetery in Sumter County. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Around 2,700 volunteers gathered on Sunday, May 25, to plant American flags at the estimated 244,000 grave sites at the Florida National Cemetery in Sumter County. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Around 2,700 volunteers gathered on Sunday, May 25, to plant American flags at the estimated 244,000 grave sites at the Florida National Cemetery in Sumter County. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Around 2,700 volunteers gathered on Sunday, May 25, to plant American flags at the estimated 244,000 grave sites at the Florida National Cemetery in Sumter County. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Around 2,700 volunteers gathered on Sunday, May 25, to plant American flags at the estimated 244,000 grave sites at the Florida National Cemetery in Sumter County. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Around 2,700 volunteers gathered on Sunday, May 25, to plant American flags at the estimated 244,000 grave sites at the Florida National Cemetery in Sumter County. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Around 2,700 volunteers gathered on Sunday, May 25, to plant American flags at the estimated 244,000 grave sites at the Florida National Cemetery in Sumter County. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Around 2,700 volunteers gathered on Sunday, May 25, to plant American flags at the estimated 244,000 grave sites at the Florida National Cemetery in Sumter County. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)

    After I left Bushnell, I traveled about an hour to Clermont to visit the Memorial Vietnam Traveling Wall at Waterfront Park. There, I met Brock and Toni Creekmore, who were visiting the wall to find the name of her uncle, Ronald Gaffney, who was killed in Vietnam in 1965.

    “Very overwhelming,” Toni Creekmore told me. “I was so little when he died, seeing it, understand how my mother was.”

    “We don’t think about how it affects families,” Brock Creekmore said. “Her mother lost a very, very close brother and she was never the same. My father lost his older brother on the beaches of Normandy, June 6, 1944, and you could see the effect in him.”

    Clermont

    Brock and Toni Creekmore visit the Memorial Vietnam Travelling Wall in Clermont on Sunday, May 25, at Waterfront Park. Toni’s uncle, Ronald Gaffney, was killed in Vietnam in 1965. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    Brock and Toni Creekmore visit the Memorial Vietnam Travelling Wall in Clermont on Sunday, May 25, at Waterfront Park. Toni’s uncle, Ronald Gaffney, was killed in Vietnam in 1965. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    The Memorial Vietnam Travelling Wall on display in Clermont on Sunday, May 25, at Waterfront Park. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    People visit the Memorial Vietnam Travelling Wall in Clermont on Sunday, May 25, at Waterfront Park. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)
    The Memorial Vietnam Travelling Wall on display in Clermont on Sunday, May 25, at Waterfront Park. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.)

    Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.

    Share this @internewscast.com
    FacebookXRedditPinterest
    You May Also Like
    Israel says it killed Al Jazeera journalist, claiming he was a Hamas leader
    • Local news

    Israel Reports Killing Al Jazeera Journalist, Alleging Hamas Leadership Role

    The Israel Defense Forces announced they had killed an individual in Gaza…
    • Internewscast
    • August 11, 2025
    Here's the biggest news you missed this weekend
    • Local news

    Here are the major news updates from this weekend that you might have missed

    The White House is thinking about extending an invitation to Ukrainian President…
    • Internewscast
    • August 10, 2025
    Zelenskyy: We will not let Russia 'deceive' US
    • Local news

    Zelenskyy: We Won’t Allow Russia to ‘Mislead’ the US

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that his country will not let…
    • Internewscast
    • August 11, 2025
    Two officers shot in Gibson City, Suspect sought
    • Local news

    Two Officers Injured in Gibson City Shooting, Authorities Seek Suspect

    Update: 8/10/2025 10:15 a.m. An email from Illinois State Police this morning…
    • Internewscast
    • August 10, 2025
    What to know about how Trump's judicial picks could reshape abortion rights for decades
    • Local news

    How Trump’s Judicial Appointments May Influence Abortion Rights for Years

    CHICAGO – According to an Associated Press review, multiple judicial nominees chosen…
    • Internewscast
    • August 10, 2025
    Beaufort Memorial Hospital receives national recognitions
    • Local news

    Beaufort Memorial Hospital Gains National Accolades

    BEAUFORT, S.C. () — The Beaufort Memorial Hospital has received two national…
    • Internewscast
    • August 10, 2025
    Israeli strike kills journalists in Gaza City, worsening the death toll for the media
    • Local news

    Israeli Attack in Gaza City Claims Lives of Journalists, Increasing Media Casualties

    JERUSALEM – On Sunday, an airstrike by Israel’s military claimed the life…
    • Internewscast
    • August 11, 2025
    Feel sticky this summer? That's because it's been record muggy East of the Rockies
    • Local news

    Feeling Sticky This Summer? Record Humidity Strikes East of the Rockies

    Over 70 million people across America endured the stickiest start to summer…
    • Internewscast
    • August 10, 2025
    Paramount CEO lauds South Park creators for being ‘equal opportunity offenders’
    • Local news

    Paramount CEO Praises South Park Creators for Their Inclusive Satire

    (The Hill) — Paramount’s new CEO David Ellison praised “South Park” creators…
    • Internewscast
    • August 11, 2025
    Miami-Dade is red, but Democrats aren’t giving up on Florida
    • Local news

    Despite Miami-Dade Turning Red, Democrats Maintain Hope in Florida

    MIAMI — The shift in Miami-Dade County’s political landscape during the election…
    • Internewscast
    • August 11, 2025
    EXCLUSIVE: Skull of fisherman found in West Valley pond confirmed to be man missing since 2017
    • Local news

    BREAKING: Skull Discovered in West Valley Pond Identified as Missing Fisherman from 2017

    WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah (ABC4) November 20th, 2017.  That was the last…
    • Internewscast
    • August 10, 2025

    11-Year-Old Attacked by Mountain Lion Near Malibu Residence

    (KTLA) Authorities shot and killed a mountain lion after an 11-year-old child was…
    • Internewscast
    • August 11, 2025
    Backpacker who killed a man while riding an e-scooter pleads guilty
    • News

    Backpacker Pleads Guilty to Killing Man in E-Scooter Incident

    A British traveler admitted guilt after causing the death of a father…
    • Internewscast
    • August 11, 2025

    Chelsea Perplexed by Unexplained Disappearance of £30,000 in Camera Gear

    Chelsea have reported a bizarre incident at their Cobham training base after…
    • Internewscast
    • August 11, 2025
    Israeli strike kills journalists in Gaza City, worsening the death toll for the media
    • Local news

    Israeli Attack in Gaza City Claims Lives of Journalists, Increasing Media Casualties

    JERUSALEM – On Sunday, an airstrike by Israel’s military claimed the life…
    • Internewscast
    • August 11, 2025
    Israel has accused Australia of undermining its security and helping Hamas after Anthony Albanese announced that his government will formally recognise Palestinian statehood at the UN next month. The Prime Minister made the long-awaited announcement at a press conference in Canberra on Monday afternoon after similar commitments were made by other Western allies including the UK, France and Canada.
    • AU

    Israel Claims Australia’s Actions Threaten Its Security and Aid Hamas

    Israel has accused Australia of undermining its security and helping Hamas after…
    • Internewscast
    • August 11, 2025
    Internewscast Journal
    • Home
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Guest Post
    • Support Our Cause
    Copyright 2023. All Right Reserverd.