NEWBURYPORT — The Exchange Club of Greater Newburyport will present its 16th annual Field of Honor on Sunday, at noon, on the Bartlet Mall, a date tied to the 9/11 attacks on the country.
The field, with some 250 flags, honors those who serve, whether military, fire, police, EMT or medical personnel, plus personal heroes in our own lives. Each flag represents one such individual.
The Merrimack Valley Concert Band will offer patriotic music at several points throughout the ceremony.
Opening remarks will be offered by Newburyport Mayor Sean Reardon, Veterans Affairs Officer Kevin Hunt, State Rep. Dawne Shand, D-Newburyport, and State Sen. Bruce Tarr, R-Gloucester. Students from the Newburyport Interact Club will speak of those who have served in their own families, with Calleigh Curran making a longer keynote address.
Adding solemnity to the ceremony will be the presence of a Newburyport Fire Department sculpture created from the steel wreckage at the World Trade Center in New York.
Flags may be purchased ahead of time for $40 at the Bartlet Mall site from 4 to 6 p.m. on Wednesday through Saturday preceding the event or ordered on-line at xcnbptflags.com Each flag may include a dedication that will be read aloud at the end of the ceremony in what is called a “verbal wall.” All are welcome and encouraged to attend the Sunday ceremony, whether purchasing a flag or not.
The Exchange Club is a national service organization dating back to 1911 that honors those who serve, as well as offering programs of service to youth, to the prevention of child abuse and to the general need as it presents itself. The Newburyport club will celebrate its 50th anniversary next year.