Santa Maria community honors fallen service men and women on Memorial Day

SANTA MARIA, Calif. - Armando Moreno, a veteran who serviced in the United States Marine Corps, came to honor our fallen hero’s. "Along with that I’m also mindful of those families of those fallen. In Vietnam we lost 58,000 men and women and I know that the families continue to suffer and always well."

Moreno, who serviced during the Vietnam war, shares why this ceremony hits close to home. "Armando Moreno I’ve got a A lot of friends who are buried here and I think of them a lot."

Veteran Nathaniel Taylor of the United states Marine Corps shared the importance of never forgetting the sacrifices our fallen hero’s made. "Veteran Memorial day means to me to give thanks for those who have gone before us air today and my hope is that those were here today really gave thanks to those who made it possible for us to have events like this."

Some veterans say due to the pandemic they’re not seeing as many people at the ceremony but they’re humbled by the community’s continued support

"Normally it’s elbow room it would just be elbow room because there’s so many people but we normally get plenty of support every year," said Taylor.

Despite the smaller crowd, Moreno is grateful to those who came.

"It’s Great that they have supported the military and our fallen," said Moreno.

The ceremony included a prayer, presentation of wreaths, and several guest speakers.