On Monday at noon in downtown Poulsbo, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2463 will be holding its annual Memorial Day service to honor military service members who’ve past away.

The event, set to be held at Muriel Iverson Williams Waterfront Park has been orchestrated by the post for over 20 years, according to Bob Wojcikowski, the commander of the post. Poulsbo Mayor Becky Erickson will be the main speaker at the event. Other featured guests will include the North Kitsap High School band, Department of Washington VFW Auxiliary President Ruth Lamoureux and the color guard from the Bremerton Naval Hospital.

Wojcikowski said he’s waiting to hear back from the Coast Guard to see if they will also be in attendance. The commander estimated that anywhere from 50 to 100 people will be at the event. The number of attendees has been steadily rising every year, he added.

Submarine patrols in the ’70s and participating in Desert Storm are some of the notable achievements that qualified Wojcikowsi to become a VFW member after his retirement.

“I wanted the camaraderie of the service members,” he said. It felt like home being around all those guys. 58,000 plus didn’t come back from Vietnam. Guys are getting hurt and killed all the time in Afghanistan. This is what Memorial Day is all about; remembering those who didn’t come back.”

The North Kitsap Weaver Post also claims one of two firing teams in the area. The Army provides the team with rifles and also supplies blank ammunition. The team also conducts final salutes at veteran funerals upon request. The post will be celebrating its 75th anniversary and Wojcikowsi is serving his fourth year as commander.