Since World War II, Columbia has hosted a Memorial Day parade. At one point, the small town featured the largest parade marking the holiday in the country, said parade organizers. While the scale of the parade may be reduced some, the spirit behind Memorial Day events in Columbia remains strong.

Columbia will kick off its Memorial Day events at noon on Sunday, May 26, with a performance from the Bainbridge Band in the gazebo in Locust Street Park, 550 Locust St. At 1 p.m., a ceremony will begin.

The ceremony will feature community members and local dignitaries who will honor the holiday. "There will be a reading of the Gettysburg Address, remarks from Mayor Lutz, a main speaker ... and a prayer by deacon Henry Reese," said Bob Herman, one of the event organizers.

Manuel Acuna will be the speaker and the parade grand marshal. Born in Los Angeles, Acuna joined the Marines directly out of high school. He was stationed at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina before being called to service in Beirut, Lebanon. "I was there during the time of the bombing that took 243 Marines and Navy personnel," he recalled. "Then I was stationed in Okinawa, Japan, for a year. I served in the Marines from 1981 to 1986."

After living as a civilian for more than a decade, Acuna felt called to return to service after the events of Sept. 11, 2001. He joined the Army and served in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. "During Operation Iraqi Freedom, we encountered an IED (improvised explosive device), which took the life of a comrade and friend," he shared. "I was tasked to escort his remains home to the U.S. to his family." Upon returning from combat, Acuna was stationed at Fort Dix in New Jersey, where he trained servicemen and servicewomen in detainee operations.

After Fort Dix, he moved to Mount Joy, where he met his wife, Kimberly. His son, Christopher, and two grandchildren also live locally. Acuna retired from the Army in 2015 and volunteers with a variety of organizations, including the Catholic War Veterans, the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion. He is also the CEO of the veteran-focused nonprofit organization Blankets of Honor.

At 2:30 p.m., the Memorial Day parade will step off from 10th and Manor streets. With a theme of "United We Stand," the parade will include multiple divisions and will feature participants from a variety of service organizations in Columbia. The parade route will end at Sixth and Locust streets.

Herman encourages everyone to come out for the ceremony and parade. "Come support our long tradition of having and honoring Memorial Day," he said.