Rochester's annual Memorial Day Parade was blessed with sunshine and clear skies on Sunday, as the marchers walked from the Town Hall down Constitution Way, and to Daggett Square, the site of the town's war memorial.

The Rochester Board of Selectmen walked at the front of the parade, followed by the Rochester Memorial School band, who played several patriotic tunes during the short march. Also walking in the parade were Rochester's Boy Scout Troop 31, and Rochester Girl Scout Troop 81001. Members of the Rochester's fire department brought up the back of the parade.

At the Daggett Square Memorial, the selectmen read the names of every Rochester veteran, starting with veterans from World War I. When the parade returned to Town Hall, they also read the names of Rochester's Civil War veterans.

Representative Bill Strauss (D-Mattapoisett) was on hand to speak at the ceremony. "The Civil War veterans are many generations removed from us," he began. "They left everything they knew here in Rochester to go as far away as they could, in order to keep the country together. So have all of our other veterans since then. It's right to honor them all individually, and spend time thinking about them and the sacrifices they made."

After he finished speaking, Boy Scout member Trent Crook read the Gettysburg Address, and Karlee Drew read a proclamation by Governor Charlie Baker. The ceremony closed out with a prayer.