College Point Memorial Day Parade honors veterans of and the memories of soldiers fallen in America's wars

 CBS New York

On the Sunday before Memorial Day, patriotism poured out onto the streets of Queens.

CBS2s Tara Jakeway got a front-row seat to the festivities.

What does Memorial Day mean to you?

“All of the guys that I left… I do this every year. I’m proud to (honor) the men who didn’t come back, the women who didn’t come back,” said James Reilly of Lake Ronkonkoma.

Reilly, a Marine Corps veteran, served our country in Vietnam and Korea.

“It’s heartbreaking. So many men and women gave their lives for this country,” added Herb Nowak, a Marine Corps veteran from Queens.
Nowak, also one of the few, the proud, served in Okinawa and the Mediterranean.

“No other organization in American history has done as much for this country as the military has,” Nowak said.

Both native New Yorkers were beaming with pride as they road alongside fellow veterans in the College Point Memorial Day Parade.

“There would be no barbecues on the beach without them hitting the beach,” a member of the NYPD Emerald Pipe Band said.