Normally Memorial Day is the end of the annual Boatnik festival.
This year instead of boat races, concerts and a carnival, there was a 30 minute ceremony to honor fallen soldiers.
The cancellation was due to social distancing guidelines. Typically, the event draws in thousands of people. The ceremony held this year was not advertised as being open to the public.
Despite the cancellations, the group that puts the event on, the Grants Pass Active Club, still wanted to do something for fallen soldiers.
The president of the Grants Pass Active Club, Travis Palmerton says, “To keep this event going is really important to us. I know we couldn’t have Boatnik because of the pandemic going on. But with something like this, it’s a 30 minute show. We still want to portray that we care about our vets.”
The show featured a jet flyover, rifle salute and a wreath laying in the Rogue River.
The event was livestreamed on the Boatnik Facebook page which you can view here.
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