The town of Marion had to cancel its parade because of the rain, but that didn't stop the residents from remembering fallen soldiers on Memorial Day. The ceremony was moved to the Sippican School multi-purpose room in a last-minute change, but still started at the scheduled 9 a.m.

The Sippican School marching band opened the ceremony with the Star Spangled Banner. This was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance, led by the Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts.

The Portuguese-American band was also in attendance, and played America the Beautiful.

The Sippican School march band played twice more throughout the ceremony that also featured the Gettysburg Address and the Girl Scout Promise recited by the Marion and Rochester Girl Scout troops.

The key speaker was Navy Commander Tom O'Malley, who shared his experiences as a Navy officer, as well as expressed his thanks to all veterans, and acknowledged the Sippican School marching band for their performances.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars of Marion then read the names of deceased veterans of the VFW and the town of Marion since last memorial day, and conducted the VFW ritual for fallen soldiers to conclude the ceremony.

Master of Ceremonies Captain Andrew Bonney of the Massachusetts Air National Guard spoke on behalf of himself and of the selectmen, and thanked veterans and the "future generation" for all they had done.

"Through participation today the next generation learns about – and helps us honor – the sacrifices made by those who went before us," he said.