U.S. Army National Guard Col. Tom Loomis of Tracy will be the principal speaker at Tracy’s Memorial Day observance Monday, May 28, at Tracy Cemetery.

His talk is part of the annual ceremonies dedicated to honoring the memory of Tracy’s war dead.

The program, sponsored by various veterans organizations in Tracy, will begin at 10 a.m. at the cemetery, at the corner of MacArthur Drive and Schulte Road.

Representatives of veterans and community organizations will place wreaths on a symbolic Grave of the Unknown. Mayor Brent Ives will issue a Memorial Day Proclamation from the Tracy City Council.

Patriotic music will be provided by the Tracy Community Band. John Treantos, commander of James McDermott Post of the American Legion will be master of ceremonies.

Before Monday’s observance, Boy Scouts will decorate the cemetery graves of military veterans with American flags.

Following Monday’s program at the cemetery, there will be another wreath-laying at 11:15 a.m. at the Tracy War Memorial on East Ninth St. in Tracy Civic Center Plaza.

The featured speaker received an Army commission in 1982 and was on active Army duty for seven years.

After joining the California National Guard, he has served in a variety of command and staff positions, including commanding the 1st Battalion of the 184th Infantry Regiment and the 223rd Infantry Regiment.

He was mobilized for the Trinity wildfires of 1991 and the Los Angeles riots of 1992.

Since 2001, Loomis has twice been called to active duty for peace-keeping duty in Kosovo. He currently serves with the Joint Forces Headquarters of the California National Guard as deputy commander of a special unit that coordinates state and federal responses during major emergencies.

Loomis, who is employed by Juniper Networks in Sunnyvale, and his wife, Michele, have two daughters. He has been a Tracy resident for the past 20 years.