Carl Hess at the Hamburg Memorial Day parade

On Monday, Item photographer Carl Hess followed the Memorial Day parade route and captured some great images.

One thing I've noticed and have written about for other papers in the past is the lack of attendance at small town parades. I know this town has the Mother of All Parades in the fall, but there's really no better weather for a parade than the sunshine that closed out our long weekend.

Since this is my first Hamburg parade, I am not sure what past events have been like, nor am I going to assume all parades are poorly attended, but from the looks of some of Carl's shots, I had more people over on Saturday night than were at the Memorial Day event.

Too often we overlook the reasons why we're given days off from our jobs, and should always be aware of a veteran or current soldier's efforts, especially since we're still in a state of conflict and so many Americans live in harm's way on a daily basis.

The people currently serving or who have served are and were a long way away from a parade, and hopefully for future patriotic days such as Memorial Day, the community could show some more support.

Thanks to Carl for being one of those who did attend the parade.