Scottsdale will have two easily distinguishable, diverse crowds this holiday.
Many descending on the city during Memorial Day weekend will be wearing clothes and expressions that invite – if not demand:
“Let’s party!”
Rather than celebrating, others will be commemorating.
The USS Arizona Memorial Gardens at Salt River will take time Memorial Day “to honor and remember the service members who sacrificed everything in defense of our nation and freedoms.”
A short program Monday, May 25, starts at 9 a.m. The program will include guest speakers and laying of the wreath.
The USS Arizona Memorial Gardens at Salt River features the largest piece of the USS Arizona outside of Pearl Harbor.
The memorial garden is at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, 7455 N. Pima Road, within the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.
The city is hosting a Memorial Day event at 10 a.m. Monday, May 25, at the Scottsdale Civic Center Memorial Lawn.
The event begins with the “Posting of the Colors” by the Scottsdale Fire Department Honor Guard.
Tom Ghrist, senior vice commander of American Legion Post 44, Kim Jones, of American Legion Post 44, and Chaplain Thomas Cole of VFW Post 3513 will help the crowd honor the fallen.
Tom Smith, commander of American Legion Post 44, will read from “General Order No. 11,” issued on May 5, 1868, by General John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic.
Logan’s order set May 30 as a national day to decorate the graves of fallen Civil War soldiers.
Memorial Day later was expanded to honor those who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. It is observed on the last Monday of May.
Justin McDaniel, leader of Elks Lodge 2148, will be followed by featured speaker Chief Master Sergeant Wesley T. “WES” Peel II, 944th Fighter Wing, of Luke Air Force Base.
Nearby American Legion Post 44 will be open to the public serving lunch after the event at 7145 E. 2nd St.
City offices will be closed Monday.
Across the Civic Center from City Hall, the Old Town Tavern hosts Memorial Day celebration from 2 to 6 p.m., featuring live music from Jared Blackstone “cold drinks, patio vibes, and a packed house full of good people.”
For the party crew, neighboring Entertainment District hotspots W Scottsdale, the REMI hotel and Maya day/nightclub offer “The Memorial Day Edit.”
For family fun, a holiday hotspot is the Arizona Boardwalk, which offers nine attractions, highlighted by OdySea Aquarium, Butterfly Wonderland, UFO Experience, Museum of Illusions, Kids Escape Room and Pangaea Land of the Dinosaurs.
Throughout the holiday weekend, the Arizona Boardwalk hosts a “foam frenzy.”
The free event features “endless foam parties, classic fire truck water play, water squirter battle zones, and other fun water activities!”
Information: azboardwalk.com.