West Hartford Old Guard member, U.S. Army Colonel (retired) Mike Cabrey has been chosen as the grand marshal for the 2024 Memorial Day Parade, which will be held on Monday, May 27.

Submitted

The Town of West Hartford and the American Legion Post 96 are pleased to announce Mike Cabrey as the Grand Marshall for the Memorial Day Parade and Ceremony on Monday, May 27, 2024, as well as the keynote speaker for the 9^th annual inductees ceremony recognizing graduating high school students entering military service on Tuesday, May 29, 2024.

Mike Cabrey. Courtesy photo

West Hartford takes great pride in hosting its Memorial Day Parade and Ceremony held annually on the federal holiday, last Monday of May. It follows a tradition established by returning West Hartford veterans from World War I in the 1920s. All veterans are welcome to march in the parade. To sign up for the parade, go to https://www.westhartfordct.gov/MemorialDayParade.

The Memorial Day Parade commences promptly at 10 a.m. on Monday, May 27, from the corner of Woodrow Street and Farmington Avenue, and ends at the Town Hall.

Immediately following the parade each year, a brief Memorial Day ceremony is held at the Veterans Memorial to bring special meaning to the holiday. The Veterans Memorial is located at the corner of North Main Street and Farmington Avenue.

In the event of rain, the parade is canceled and the ceremony is moved to the Town Hall Auditorium, 50 South Main Street, at 11 a.m. A notice will be posted on the town’s website, westhartfordct.gov.

Mike Cabrey is a retired U.S. Army Colonel with 30 years of Active Duty service. Commissioned in May of 1986 from the United States Military Academy at West Point, he served in various Artillery positions leading and commanding from the platoon through brigade level. From 2003-2004 he commanded and led over 750 soldiers in direct combat operations in Ramadi, Iraq.

While serving in the Army, he earned the Bronze Star, Combat Action Badge, Parachutist Badge, Air Assault Badge, and the Ranger Tab and holds two Masters Degrees in Advanced Military Studies and International Relations.

Upon retirement from the Army, Cabrey served as The Dean of Administration in the College of International Security Affairs at the National Defense University (Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, DC). From 2019-2020 he was on the Planning and Zoning Commission in Colonial Beach, VA, and from 2020-2022, he was elected to the Town Council and served as the Vice Mayor of Colonial Beach. He moved to Hartford, CT, in March of 2022 where he now spends the majority of his time as a volunteer for the community. He is a member of the Old Guard of West Hartford.

Cabrey is married to the former Cathryn Moss and they have three children – a son who served as a captain in the U.S. Army, a daughter who served as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy, and a daughter who is a nurse practitioner at Johns Hopkins Medical Center and married to an Army captain.

Additional information is available at www.WestHartfordCT.gov/MemorialDayParade. Questions about the parade may be directed to Renée McCue at 860-561-7521, [email protected].