BY WILLIAM O’GUREK
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The Summit Hill Memorial Day Parade Committee has selected longtime Legionnaire Clem Midas to be to be the grand marshal of the 2024 parade, Carbon County’s largest tribute to America on Memorial Day.
Midas, a resident of Summit Hill, will lead the three-division parade that will step off at 11 a.m. Monday, May 27, after the traditional memorial service that will begin at 10 a.m. in the center of Ludlow Park.
“I’m very honored to even be considered,” said Midas. “My first reaction is there has to be other people more deserving, and so I was initially reluctant to accept the role. But it’s a great honor. I know my parents would be very proud of this. My father (Clem Sr.) and his four brothers (Tom, John, Michael and Henry) all enlisted in the Army during World War II, and so I will lead the parade as a proud representative of all veterans, but especially those from Post 316 and my family.”
Midas will ring the old Summit Hill High School bell in Ludlow Park to signal the start of the parade, which will proceed west on Ludlow Street, round St. Joseph Catholic Church of the Panther Valley and then proceed east to the cemetery complex at the extreme end of the community.
Parade committee chairman Thomas Vermillion said of Midas, “Clem was a unanimous choice of both the American Legion and the parade committee. He is a longtime member of the community and has influenced the lives of so many people from Summit Hill and the surrounding areas over the years.
“Hundreds of people worked for Clem during his career at Silberline Manufacturing, most of which are from the immediate area. I personally know Clem and his family, and know what a popular and respected guy he is. He’s a great asset to the Legion and the Summit Hill community.”
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