STARKVILLE — Starkville Academy graduate Ashley Cumberland has been a supporter of the U.S. military for as long as she can remember.
When Cumberland”s boyfriend, Watson McDavitt, returned home from a tour in Iraq earlier this year with the Mississippi National Guard”s 2nd Battalion, 114th Field Artillery Regiment, the 21-year-old Starkville native knew she wanted to do something to honor the area”s soldiers.
Cumberland has teamed up with the Greater Starkville Development Partnership to bring Starkville its first Memorial Day Parade. The parade will take place May 31 at 11 a.m. in downtown Starkville.
“I feel like these people should be honored because there are so many people in our town that are veterans, from World War II to Korea to Vietnam to Iraq to Afghanistan,” Cumberland said. “We have these people in our community and we”re not doing anything to honor them. A lot of people don”t realize how many soldiers we have in our town.”
The parade will begin at First Presbyterian Church on University Drive, head west onto Main Street and end at First Methodist Church. Cumberland hopes to make the parade an annual event.
After this year”s parade, Lt. Col. Jim Sisson, who spent a year with the 114th in Iraq, will speak in front of the Oktibbeha County Courthouse, located at the corner of Main Street and D.L. Conner Drive.
More than 30 groups or organizations already have signed up to participate, Cumberland said. Groups can walk or ride in floats and trucks, she said.
Funds from the $25 participation fee will be donated to the Wounded Warriors Project, which provides programs and services to severely injured service members. Buckets will be set up on Main Street this week for the public to make donations to the Wounded Warrior Project, Cumberland said.
To participate in the parade, contact Cumberland at 662-418-1102, or [email protected].
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
