A retired U.S. Navy commander and flight officer during the Cold War of the 1980s will be the keynote speaker of the traditional Summit Hill Memorial Day services on Monday.

Gary Evans, a Summit Hill native and a son of the late Gary and Kathleen (McHugh) Evans, will speak at a program hosted by American Legion Post 316, slated to begin at 10 a.m. in Ludlow Park in the center of the community.

The service will be followed by an 11 o’clock start of the Summit Hill Memorial Day Parade, Carbon County’s largest tribute to our military.

About the speaker

Evans grew up in the Panther Valley community, where, he said, “Memorial Day was always a special tradition. As a Little League player, I joined teammates marching in the parade each year before celebrating with free hot dogs and an afternoon ballgame — memories that make returning as this year’s guest speaker especially meaningful.”

After graduating from Panther Valley High School in 1974, Evans attended the U.S. Naval Academy, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in oceanography in 1978. He went on to complete flight training in Pensacola, Florida, and earned his Wings of Gold as a naval flight officer in 1981.

His first operational assignment was with Patrol Squadron 46 at Moffett Field, California, flying the P-3C Orion, a four-engine aircraft used for maritime patrol and submarine tracking. During this tour, he qualified as a mission commander, tactical coordinator and navigator. As tactical coordinator — often called the “mission quarterback” — Evans directed the aircraft’s operations, coordinated the crew, and managed the complex missions the P-3C was designed to perform.

He deployed to Adak, Alaska; Kadena, Japan; and Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, where he was part of the first full patrol squadron to operate from that remote location.

Following that tour, Evans served with Patrol Squadron 31, the Fleet Replacement Squadron that trains new aircrew and maintenance personnel for all Pacific Fleet patrol squadrons. There, he qualified as a P-3C naval flight officer evaluator, testing and certifying operational aircrews in California and Hawaii.

He later spent two and a half years in Atsugi, Japan, serving as flag secretary on the staff of the commander of Fleet Air Western Pacific. While in Japan, he also qualified as a copilot in the C-12F aircraft, flying support missions throughout the region, including Korea, the Philippines, Guam and northern Japan.

He returned to Moffett Field for his department head tour with Patrol Squadron 9, deploying again to Adak, Alaska, as operations officer. He then served as training officer and operations officer on the staff of Patrol Wing 10.

Over the course of his Navy career, Evans accumulated more than 2,500 flight hours as a P-3 mission commander and tactical coordinator, deploying throughout the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

After retiring from active duty in 1998, he began a second career — first as a contractor for EDS, later as a government civilian at the Pentagon. There he worked for the Department of Defense chief information officer as a policy specialist in system security and personal privacy protection. He created the DOD’s template and guidance for ensuring personnel privacy on government systems. Before retiring a second time, after 20 years of civilian service, he served as a senior budget analyst supporting the department CIO’s annual Information Technology budget to Congress.

His academic credentials include a master’s in information systems from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, and a master’s in national security and strategic studies from the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island.

His military decorations include three Meritorious Service Medals and two Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medals.

The program

Former Summit Hill Mayor and Sons of the American Legion member Jeffrey Szczecina will be the master of ceremonies for the program, which will begin with welcoming remarks by Mayor Karen Ruzicka.

The invocation will be given by the Rev. Ruthann Christopher, pastor of the Hope of Christ Presbyterian Church, Summit Hill.

Paul McArdle Sr., former mayor and past commander of Post 316, will then conduct the POW-MIA ceremony, followed by orations by students from Panther Valley High School. Caroline Breslin will recite “In Flanders Field,” Ava Alabovitz, the “Gettysburg Address” and Gavin Yuricheck, “Gen. Logan’s General Orders.”

The main address by Evans will follow, after which time Post 316 Chaplain Gregory Miller will read the roll call of soldiers who passed away since last year’s Memorial Day, followed by taps and the rifle salute by the post honor guard.

Offering comments for Joseph “Mucker” Williams, a veteran of the Vietnam War who has been selected to be the grand marshal of the parade, will be his daughter, Kimberly Guth.

Szczecina will make closing remarks and the program will conclude with the benediction by Christopher.

The 2026 Poppy Queen will be Charlotte Basiago, 7, daughter of John and Cathy Basiago of Macungie and granddaughter of Karen Basiago of Summit Hill, and the late veteran John “Ajax” Basiago, a longtime Post 316 member before his passing.

At the close of the program, Williams will the ring the old former Summit Hill High School bell that sits in Ludlow Park to signal the start of the 2026 parade.

No White Bear service

The Legion announced that it will not conduct the traditional service it normally holds at St. Joseph Cemetery, White Bear, but will read the roll call there at 1 p.m. Sunday, followed by the Legion’s rifle squad providing the salute to veterans.