Just days before Memorial Day, more than 40 Biddeford students helped honor deceased veterans at St. Joseph’s Cemetery
By RANDY SEAVER | Editor
Just four days before the Memorial Day holiday, more than 40 fourth graders from Biddeford Intermediate School received a valuable, interactive life lesson about service and about honoring those who gave the ultimate sacrifice.
In what has become an annual tradition, the students worked alongside local veterans and volunteers from the Biddeford-Saco Rotary Club to place ceremonial flags at the individual burial sites of more than 2,500 local veterans who lie in rest at St. Joseph’s Cemetery in Biddeford.
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“The kids were just wonderful,” said Richard St. Onge, Commander of American Legion Post 26 in Biddeford.
“We do this every year, but it is always so rewarding to see the kids’ enthusiasm for this project,” St. Onge said. “Many of them are just 10 years old, but they are so respectful, so willing to learn and so ready to show gratitude toward those who have served.”
According to St. Onge, it took a little less than three hours for the students and other volunteers to accomplish their mission, placing small American flags at the site of each buried veteran in the cemetery.
Former Mayor Marty Grohman, a long-time volunteer with area veterans’ groups, said it was inspiring to see the students embrace the meaning and purpose of the national holiday.
“It’s just heartwarming,” Grohman said. “The kids really embraced it and took it to heart. They seemed to intuitively understand the significance of the holiday.”
St. Onge said American Legion Post 26 decided several years ago to “adopt” the fourth-grade class at Biddeford Intermediate School.
“This is how we pass on the things we have learned and endured,” St. Onge explained. “It’s good for us to see and experience another generation stepping up.”
The local veterans stay in close contact with the school throughout the year, often making presentations and sharing lessons with students.
Each year, for the past three years, the American Legion donates $1,000 to the school to help with the purchase of school supplies and other items students need.
“It’s a good partnership,” St. Onge said.
Once the flags are set in place, the veterans and other volunteers follow the students back to the school, where they all enjoy an “ice cream social,” funded by the veterans.
“We invite the whole school to join us, not just the kids who joined us at the cemetery,” St. Onge said.
As Commander of the American Legion Post, St. Onge will once again help lead the annual Biddeford Saco Memorial Day Parade.
While still a senior at St. Louis High School, St. Onge enlisted in the United States Navy in 1970, near the height of the Vietnam War.
Within two weeks of his high school graduation, St. Onge reported for his first day of basic training in San Diego, California.
St. Onge faithfully served his country for more than 20 years as a submariner.
“It’s important for all of us to remember those who did not come home,” he said. “That’s what Memorial Day is all about.”
Memorial Day Parade & Ceremony
Once again, the Heart of Biddeford is coordinating the Biddeford-Saco Memorial Day parade and honor ceremony on Monday, May 25.
The parade begins at Saco City Hall, beginning at 10 a.m. and concludes around 11 a.m. at Veterans Memorial Park in Biddeford, where a closing ceremony will take place.
For more information, visit Heart of Biddeford/Memorial Day 2026
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