McKenna marched with VFW Auxiliary Post 701 in Lansing’s Memorial Day Parade on Saturday morning. But he wasn’t the only one celebrating the colors of the U.S. flag, as around a hundred residents of all ages attended the parade in downtown Lansing to remember American heroes.

Wrapping around the Capitol, the parade included a variety of local heroes, including veterans from the VFW 6232 of Lansing, Military Order of the Purple Heart Capital City chapter and the East Lansing and Lansing fire departments.

Marching bands from high schools such as Lansing Eastern and Everett serenaded the crowd with “God Bless America,” as parade units such as Dangerous Knights Chess Club and Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero walked the streets downtown.

Carol Munroe, Lansing Parks and Recreation administrative specialist for special events, said there were a number of steps to complete in the preparation process.

“It was a lot of detail in just trying to send out notices to a wide variety of people letting them know the parade is coming and asking if they would be interested in applying to be a unit,” she said.

As Lansing resident Dick Stuckman stood at the head of the parade holding a handful of U.S. flags, he said he worried the weather would prevent him from being able to spread the small symbols of patriotism on the gloomy, sunless morning of the parade.

“One of the (themes) of the Exchange Club is Americanism and so they have this program that’s give a kid a flag to wave,” he said. “The weather as such as it is, I’m afraid that there aren’t going to be too many people out because I think they’re afraid of the rain.”

But as the parade progressed, Stuckman and his fellow club members were able to find dozens of children sitting all along the streets of downtown Lansing.

Fifteen minutes before the event started, Lansing resident Terrie Marker and her family unfolded lawn chairs and marked their spot along the parade route.

“I love coming down here (for this),” Marker said. “It’s fun and it’s entertaining.”

As for her 4-year-old grandson Conner Bauman, Marker said he couldn’t wait to attend his second Lansing Memorial Day Parade in a row.

“He got up this morning at 8 and said, ‘Is it time to go yet? Can we go yet?’” she said, laughing at her grandson’s excitement two hours before the parade’s start.

Waving a small U.S. flag, Bauman said his favorite part of the parade was the police on motorcycles at the beginning and end of the procession.

The parade was followed by a Memorial Ceremony in the Little Arlington section of Evergreen Cemetery, 1709 E. Mt. Hope, in Lansing, to honor fallen soldiers.