The Memorial Day service at the Washington State Vietnam Memorial.

The Capitol Rotunda Memorial Day ceremony.

The Capitol in Olympia had two Memorial Day ceremonies Monday, the official one at 11 a.m. in the Capitol Rotunda and a less-conventional one at the State Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial at 12 noon. During the indoor ceremony, Lt. Col. Douglas LeVien spoke to a large crowd regarding those who have given their lives in defense of their country, calling it “the debt we can never repay.”

Afterward, the Olympia Thunder Run veteran motorcycle clubs arrived to join with other veterans in celebrating the 25th anniversary of the opening of the State Vietnam Memorial. Former Secretary of State Ralph Munro, who, together with former Governor Booth Gardner, unveiled the memorial in 1987, was master of ceremonies for the event which included speeches, the Tacoma Scots bagpipe band, and a “Huey” helicopter flyover. The event drew about 500 people.

Former Secretary of State Ralph Munro emcees the ceremony.

Chopper finally arrives.

Hundreds of Harleys -- and a few riceburners -- line the diagonal near the monument.

The chopper was a bit late, and as the restive crowd awaited its arrival, and waited and waited, Munro remarked that for combat vets, it really wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. Then, finally, it arrived, hovered over the crowd, appeared to do a bow in mid-air, and scurried off into the sky.

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