Memorial Day in the Valley

Memorial Day events in the San Fernando Valley include:

* The Canoga Park Memorial Day Parade will begin at 11 a.m. Monday at Sherman Way and Owensmouth Avenue and proceed east on Sherman Way, south on De Soto Avenue, west on Vanowen Street, ending at Vanowen and Owensmouth. An awards ceremony will follow at noon at Vanowen and Jordan Avenue. In addition, Canoga Park High School will host a Western days event sponsored by the school’s Future Farmers of America from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 6850 Topanga Canyon Blvd. Information: (818) 884-4222.

* A ceremony honoring veterans will take place at 10 a.m. Monday at Valhalla Memorial Park, 10621 Victory Blvd., North Hollywood. The hourlong event will include a parade, speakers and the placement of a wreath at a veterans monument. An open house will follow at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 10040 at 8548 Lankershim Blvd., Sun Valley. (818) 761-8809.

* Burbank will hold a Memorial Day ceremony beginning at 11 a.m. at McCambridge Park’s war memorial, 1515 N. Glenoaks Blvd., Burbank. Speakers will include U. S. Rep. Carlos J. Moorhead (R-Glendale), state Sen. Newton Russell (R-Glendale) and Yvonne Files, a former Belgian resistance fighter during World War II. At 11:15 a.m., a squadron of fighter planes will perform a flyover.

* For those interested in some lazy, down-home entertainment--like watermelon seed spitting and weed arrangement contests, the Topanga Days Country Fair starts today at 8 a.m. with a 10K run through Topanga State Park. The fair itself will be held at the Community House, 1440 Topanga Canyon Blvd., from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. today and Sunday. The Will Geer Memorial Parade begins Monday at 11 a.m. Admission is $5.