Dear Members of the Bronxville Community:

Jun. 8, 2016:  It was with great difficulty and sadness that the village chose to cancel this year's Memorial Day parade.

It continues to weigh on me daily. The background for the decision-making in consultation with my fellow trustees, village administrator, grand marshal, and the police was thus--Westchester County sends us special weather advisories, and they forecasted a "deluge" of rain at the rate of an inch an hour during parade time as well as dangerous thunder and lightning.

My colleagues in Eastchester, Yonkers, Ossining, and Pleasantville were all faced with the same dire forecast and decision. We all felt a duty to cancel, as we were potentially putting veterans, musicians with instruments, honor guards with rifles, and bicycle-riding youngsters in harm's way.

We were last to make the call, as it was agonizing, but we had a duty to all participants to do so in a timely fashion out of respect for their organizations, transportation, and planning.

As was evident, the weathermen's predictions were incorrect, but gambling with people's safety was not an option.

We look forward to honoring our veterans in a venue going forward, as our respect for our veterans is boundless, and honoring them center stage has been the central focus of all of our recent parades.

Best,

Mary C. Marvin
Mayor of Bronxville

Editor's note:  MyhometownBronxville does not fact-check statements in letters to the editor, and the opinions do not necessarily reflect the thinking of its staff. Its objective in publishing letters to the editor is to give air to diverse thoughts and opinions of residents in the community.