Plan Ahead for Vets Day Parade Nov. 11
Salute our nation’s veterans at the annual Veterans Day Parade in Leonardtown, MD, starting at 10 am Nov. 11, 2015. beginning at Fenwick Street.
The Vets Day Parade features many of St. Mary’s County veterans, officials, high school marching bands, military units, color guards, classic and antique cars, boy and girl scouts, cheerleaders, motorcycles, and horses, as well as fire, police and emergency personnel and equipment.
After the parade a Veterans Memorial Ceremony is scheduled on Town Square with patriotic music, laying of wreaths, and words of remembrance.
A restored MiG-21 cockpit will be on display and representatives from Vacations for Vets, Disabled American Veterans (DAV), The Marine Corps League and Young Marines, The Patuxent River Naval Air Museum, and CSM’s Heroes Campaign will be there. These organizations can provide information on programs for veterans and active-duty military, including ways that the general public can help our local military families.
Inclement weather will cancel the parade, but the Memorial Ceremony will move to Leonard Hall Recreation Center, 23145 Leonard Hall Drive, Leonardtown, MD, at 11 am, representing the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, when the armistice was signed between the Allies and Germany ending World War I. Those wishing to lay wreaths at the monuments may choose to do so.
Parking for Spectators:
Spectators should park at the St. Mary’s County Fairgrounds and ride one of the complimentary, round-trip, shuttles into town. Parking is also available at the St. Mary’s County Governmental Center in areas near the Carter State Office Building, 23115 Leonard Hall Drive, Leonardtown, MD. From there you may walk into town or board a shuttle at the shuttle stop near the flagpoles between the Carter Office Building and the Potomac Building. Handicap-accessible shuttles will be available at both locations.
Washington and Fenwick streets leading into downtown Leonardtown will be closed to traffic from 8 am until noon. Downtown parking and thru traffic will be limited to areas accessible from Lawrence Avenue. Officers from the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office will provide traffic control, and parade volunteers will assist with parking and street detours.
Handicapped Parking: Spectators requiring handicapped parking may take Washington Street and upon showing proof of a handicapped sticker or need, will be allowed to park in the designated lot behind the Church of the Nazarene.
Here is a map of available parking areas.
Parking and Shuttles for Parade Participants
Please do not park in the Courthouse Parking lot on Courthouse Drive or surrounding side streets. These areas will be used by school buses and shuttles and must remain clear to reduce congestion at the end of the parade.
Also, please do not park at the College of Southern Maryland, Leonardtown Campus; the college will be open for classes on Veterans Day and parking spaces are needed for students and faculty.
For those who are in the parade, please be in place at the lineup at St. Mary’s Ryken High School no later than 9:30 am. Please plan accordingly as follows:
Parade vehicles, including buses, floats, emergency vehicles, cars, trucks and motorcycles, should report directly to the staging area at St. Mary’s Ryken High School between 7 and 8 am. All parade vehicles should be parked by 8 am.
Marching groups and other parade participants should park at Leonardtown Middle School and take the shuttle to St. Mary’s Ryken High School between 8 and 9:30 am.
Parents cannot drop off their children at Ryken High School, along the side of the road or at the intersection. Everyone who is participating in the parade and is not riding in a vehicle should ride the shuttle bus from Leonardtown Middle School.
