By Nicki Skinner, The Mountain Statesman
GRAFTON, W.Va. — Taylor County is just months away from its annual Memorial Day commemoration, and the need for volunteers is increasing as preparations are in their final stages.
According to Memorial Day Parade Committee Chairman Scott Willis, without the hard work and dedication of a group of volunteers, the parade would not come to be.
“Without their enthusiasm and commitment to the parade, it would have not grown into the sight that it is today, earning it the recognition of the official Memorial Day Parade for West Virginia,” Willis said.
Every year, the West Virginia Memorial Day Committee works to make the parade a little bigger and better from the year before, as it is an event that draws tens of thousands into Taylor County.
The committee is comprised solely of volunteers, so they are often faced with a lack of time for fundraising efforts, because everyone is already taking care of other jobs, in addition to their normal daily obligations, Willis said.
“Our group does a great job, but we are finding it hard to recruit new volunteers that want to help keep the parade going down the street,” said committee secretary Emily Brown. “A lot of the volunteers we do have, have been donating their time for 30 to 40 years and are wanting to retire, in essence.”
