Locals splash into unofficial first day of summer at parades and pools
Katherine Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
The Monongahela Memorial Day parade was led by the Mon Valley Color Guard. Main Street was lined with attendees – many dressed in red, white and blue – who clapped as the Color Guard passed.
Katherine Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
The Ringgold High School Color Guard danced down Monongahela’s Main Street Monday as part of the town’s Memorial Day parade.
Katherine Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
Flags flew up and down Monongahela’s Main Street Monday morning, as units – including Ringgold High School’s Color Guard – marched proudly in the Memorial Day parade. The street was lined with locals clapping as the parade progressed along the town’s main drag.
Katherine Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
Ringgold High School marching band carried several tunes down Main Street as part of Monongahela’s Memorial Day parade Monday morning.
Katherine Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
Brandon Peddicord, Frasier Lerda and Delaney Peddicord strike a pose Monday morning during Monongahela’s Memorial Day parade. The kids, accompanied by parents Angela and Chad Peddicord, of Fallowfield, and Tricia Caputo-Lerda, of Carroll Township, were dressed for the occasion and enjoyed the small parade along Main Street.
Katherine Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
Rica Malone, of Washington, cools off in Washington Park Pool on Memorial Day. Malone and her longtime best friend grew up at the pool, and now spend long, happy days relaxing while their kids play.
Katherine Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
Liam Yandeo gets some serious air at Washington Park Pool. Yandeo and his brother spent Memorial Day diving and swimming with friends.
Katherine Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
The McCartney and Duchi bunch spent Memorial Day at Washington Park Pool. Caleb and Savayah McCartney, left, laughed alongside Shantel Wilkinson and Kurie Duchi, right.
Katherine Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
Yahir Ruiz takes a deep breath before plunging into Washington Park Pool Monday. Ruiz, 7, of Washington spent Memorial Day at the pool with his father, Pablo Ruiz.
Katherine Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
Sienna Majkowski jumps into summer last Memorial Day at Canonsburg Town Park Pool while her dad, Brandon, looks on with a smile. Sienna’s siblings, Alivia and Christian, were content to let their dad wade with them through the refreshingly cool water.
Folks turned out in droves to Canonsburg's Town Park Pool Monday to celebrate Memorial Day - and opening weekend - in refreshingly cool water.
Temps were nearly in the 90s, and after Memorial Day parades, locals beat the heat in area pools Monday, the unofficial first day of summer.
Memorial Day parades in Canonsburg and Monongahela kicked off around 9 a.m., followed by services at local cemeteries. In the valley, Monongahela’s Main Street was crowded and festive, dressed in memorial banners and American flags.
The parade, led by the Mon Valley Color Guard, began at Fourth Street. Upbeat music from the Ringgold High School marching band filled the downtown.
“My grandfather was a prisoner of war in World War II. He marched the Death March (across Germany),” said Tricia Caputo-Lerda, of Carroll Township, who attended the parade with her son Frasier and family friends Angela, Chad, Brandon and Delaney Peddicord, of Fallowfield.
Caputo-Lerda does her best to show up for veterans every Memorial Day. She’s teaching her son, Frasier, to respect the military.
“I try to instill in my son (patriotism),” she said. “I try to make sure that my son knows” the sacrifice her grandfather, Thomas Kissler, and others made to keep America the land of the free.
After parades, folks cooled off in local pools. For the first time in two years, crowds packed into Washington Park Pool, and Canonsburg Town Park Pool, too, teemed with locals enjoying a dip in bright blue waters on opening weekend.
“We have so much fun,” said Helen McCartney, of Washington, while she watched her grandkids splash in the Washington Park Pool. “We have a big family. We like to find things that we all can do together.”
Brandon Majkowski, of Washington, and his three kids cooled off in Canonsburg, where folks played volleyball and basketball and took turns diving into Town Park Pool’s deep end.
“We like it here,” Majkowski said.
Judging by the forecast, Majkowski and other locals are going to like pool time more than ever all season long.