Memorial Day at the Monument has been a treasured Matecumbe Historical Trust event since the 1980s, organized for years by Trust Founder, Irving Eyster, and now, since Irving’s death, by his daughter, Barbara Edgar.

This year, Florida Senator Ana Maria Rodriguez addressed the crowd. Also present: Jim Mooney, Florida House, Michele Lincoln, David Rice and Holly Raschein from the County Commission, Anna Richards, Deb Gillis from the Village, Sherri Hodies, Supervisor of Elections, Sue Woltanski,School Board.

Local veterans contributed a wreath and passed out poppies to those in attendance. The poppy was originally associated with Veterans Day but is now primarily worn during the Memorial Day weekend, here and around the country.

In 1992, the owner of a wreath company in Maine, had a surplus of holiday wreaths. He donated them to Arlington National Cemetery as a tribute to the fallen—a gesture that soon became an annual tradition on Memorial Day. It may have been traditional to lay wreaths at the Hurricane Monument even earlier than 1992.

Thank you to the Matecumbe Historical Trust for this special annual community event.