101-Year-Old Grand Marshal Leads New Brunswick/Highland Park Memorial Day Parade

Cornelius McGee moved toward the monument as fast as his 101-year-old legs would take him.

Helping lay a wreath at the base of the stone-faced Civil War soldier in New Brunswick’s Monument Park was part of his duty as grand marshal of Monday’s Memorial Day Parade.

McGee paused for a moment and turned to New Brunswick Mayor Jim Cahill.

“I always stop here when I go for my walks in the city,” he said.

Memorial Day is set aside as a day to remember those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for their country, for our freedom.

McGee, an Army Private First Class who was sent to Germany during World War II, and the other veterans say they feel a sacred duty to keep alive the memories of their fallen comrades’ heroism and service.

It is a solemn sentiment summed up near the end of the parade after it had already moved across the Albany Street Bridge and to the shadow of the famous Doughboy statue in Highland Park.

“Most of us took a vow that as long as a veteran has breath, he’s going to honor his other veterans who passed away,” said VFW Post 370’s Bob Porter.

In between, McGee’s moving moment and Porter’s words, two communities north and south of the Raritan River were united in their deep appreciation for fallen heroes everywhere.

Hundreds of people lined the route as the New Brunswick High School Marching Band provided music.

Members of the Rotary Club, Greater Brunswick Chapter of the NAACP and the New Brunswick Recreation Department, and other community partners followed behind.

The members of the police and fire departments from both towns kept everyone safe.

Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., Middlesex County Commissioner Claribel Azcona Barber, and others waved as the parade moved along.

There were so many people waving American flags along the route that it could have been a moment immortalized in a Rockwell painting.

Not only was this a collaboration between the neighboring towns, but also with VFW Post 370, the Veterans Alliance, the Catholic War Veterans of New Brunswick, the Elks Veterans of New Brunswick, and several other civic groups.

Not lost was the memory of the more than 1 million men and women who have died in military service since the Civil War began in 1861, according to the United States Census Bureau.

Cahill said it was important to put a human face on that staggering number.

“Each person who died during these conflicts was a loved one, cherished by family and friends and each loss rippled through their communities and throughout the nation,” he said.

Highland Park Mayor Gayle Brill Mittler said the recent mass shooting deaths in Buffalo and Uvalde, Texas cast a pall over what was already a somber day.

She said that since the beginning of the 20th century, about 673,000 American lives were lost in combat compared to 124,000 gun-related deaths since 2014 – a statistic she called “horrifying.”

“I ask our service members and veterans today who I consider some of the most knowledge about the weighty responsibility of firearms to help lead our nation in a more thoughtful and responsible discussion of the role of guns in this country,” Brill Mittler said.

The last word of the day belonged to the McGee, who came to New Brunswick from Toledo, Ohio in 1925 with his parents, Allan and Else.

He operated snow plows and other trucks for the State of New Jersey for over 40 years before retiring in 1982. He decided to return to work and drove trucks for another five years, before officially retiring in 1992.

McGee spends his time enjoying his favorite New Brunswick restaurants.

“I just want to say that I’m glad to be here and see such a wonderful turnout of people happy to live, happy to live free,” said McGee, sporting a World War II Veteran cap and a bright smile.

Story and Photo: Chuck O'Donnell