A village tradition since 1942, the annual Maywood Bataan Day Memorial Service, scheduled for September 13, 2020, has been postponed until the second Sunday in 2021. Maywood Bataan Day Organization President Richard A. McMahon and the MBDO Board of Directors notified the Village of Maywood this past week that due to the restrictions on gatherings caused by the Coronavirus pandemic, and in an abundance of caution for the citizens of Maywood, the event would not be held as planned.

President McMahon suggests that those who wish to honor the memory of the men from Maywood and surrounding suburbs who fell on the battlefields of Bataan in the Philippines, as well as those who suffered and died during the infamous Death March or subsequent captivity should visit the MBDO website and browse through hundreds of stories of the men from Maywood, as well as thousands of photos from memorial events in the past, both in Maywood and in the Philippines.

“It is our solemn duty, our promise to these heroes, that we remember their service and sacrifice,” President McMahon said. “They gave all they had. For that, we promised them immortality in our thoughts and prayers.”

The Maywood Bataan Day Memorial Service will return on September 12, 2021, at 3 pm, in Maywood Veterans Park at 1st Avenue and Oak Street in Maywood. Interested members of the local community, community leaders, veterans, and descendants of veterans will gather again to remember these men.