Video, Audio, Photos & Rush Transcript: Governor Hochul Announces Memorial Day Weekend Programs at Jones Beach State Park to Commemorate 250th Anniversary of American Revolution

Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul announced details of a major event at Jones Beach State Park to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution over Memorial Day Weekend, May 23 and 24. Governor Hochul also announced that parking will be free at Jones Beach State Park throughout Memorial Day Weekend, making the event even more affordable and accessible for New York families. The event will feature a historical village of local re-enactors and exhibits highlighting Long Island's role in the Revolutionary War, as well as a live musical performance and synchronized aerial display of up to 1,000 illuminated drones to close the program on Sunday evening.

VIDEO: The event is available to stream on YouTube here and TV quality video is available here (h.264, mp4).

AUDIO: The Governor's remarks are available in audio form here.

PHOTOS: The Governor's Flickr page will post photos of the event here.

A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:

What an exciting day to be here at Jones Beach, and I first of all, want to acknowledge our incredible Commissioner of the Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, Kathy Mosier. You'll be hearing from Commissioner Moser in a few moments. Also I want to thank Chip Gorman, everybody knows Chip, the Regional Director of the Office of Parks, for all the great work they do and keeping this crown jewels as beautiful and magnificent as it is. And we have a special guest here today, everyone. We have our first commander in chief - prefers to be called General George Washington - and he'll be addressing all of you momentarily as well. As well as Congressman William Floyd of Long Island, one of the original signers of the Declaration of Independence and a founding father.

So why are we here today? In just over a week, we're going to kick off the celebrations of our nation's 250th anniversary. We've been waiting for this, preparing for this, and are so excited about all the incredible attractions and activities that we're launching, but starting right here on Jones Beach Memorial Day. We're going to be continuing here and throughout all the Long Island parks and indeed across the state this summer. And we're going to be including our air show July 4th weekend, featuring the US Navy's unrivaled Blue Angels and celebrating their own 80th anniversary. So that's something we're looking forward to Memorial Day all the way through to 4th of July weekend.

I think celebrating our history should be available to every New Yorker. I want everybody to come here and enjoy the beaches and these events, and I've always been focused on putting money back into those pockets and finding any way I can save a few dollars here and there for struggling families, especially here on Long Island, which is a rather expensive place to live. So one thing I want to do is announce that we're waiving all the parking fees at Jones Beach all weekend long for Memorial Day. So that's money back in families pockets right there. Also ground us in what Memorial Day is all about. We cannot just talk about it in terms of a day at the beach or celebrating picnics and hot dogs and all the things that I know is a mom who made a lot of those hot dogs over many years, but also the role of the Revolutionary War.

As we celebrate and honor the lives of those who came before, fighting for the freedoms that were such a struggle in the early infancy of our great country and to remember all the way from those early conflicts to the present. There are people who put themselves in harm's way in defense of our freedoms and ultimately in defense of our Constitution that was such a seminal part of our history, the beginning of our history. So I want to make sure we remember all those lives that have been lost or disrupted in the name of our freedom, and proud to stand here and pay respects to all the men and women of the armed services who lost their lives and remind us to always keeping our prayers those who are in harm's way right now. To paraphrase writer George Sanders Saunders, "As we remember the past in reenacting its moments. Let us not forget to appreciate the ways in which the past is already living in the present."

So as we enjoy all the festivities, let's not forget that freedom, prosperity and democracy are hard fought for and we enjoy them every single day. I also want to talk about Long Island's history. I hope many of you have been watching the Ken Burns series. Anybody here watching it? Okay, I'm watching it - I'm almost done. But it's an incredible reminder for those who already knew. But opening the eyes of others who did not know the incredible role that New York State played in the early creation of our nation and the battles that were from Saratoga to Long Island and the Brooklyn area of New York City are extraordinary and they're captured in such a powerful way.

I recommend everybody watch the series and have a greater appreciation for what people went through. Ordinary people from our state, ordinary New Yorkers who stepped up and answered the call to serve. So it's a perfect place here on Long Island to celebrate the beginning of our nation from the Battle of Long Island in 1776, when General Washington courageously defended Brooklyn from British invasion. To the Culper Culper Spy Ring in 1778, which operated out of Setauket to America's victory for independence at the Revolutionary War, that could not have happened without Long Island or New York.

In fact, a third of all Revolutionary War battles were fought here in the State of New York. New York is where the Declaration of Independence was first read to the Continental Army, where Washington was sworn in as the first President of the United States and where the first Congress authored and passed the Bill of Rights. No other state in our nation can claim this incredible heritage, so we want our unique history to come alive at Jones Beach through an incredible family-friendly program. We're going to have period music in games and colonial cooking demonstrations and numerous reenactments. And speaking of which, I want to thank all of our re-enactors who've joined us here today and making sure that makes history come alive for each and every one of us. They've worked so hard to understand up close how things used to be done, and can share those stories with all of our residents here, and they've dedicated themselves to sharing that knowledge. So it's not every day you get a chance to hear from George Washington. I'm going to let you hear from him in a couple of moments but one new, exciting announcement.

We're also going to have a display of new technology, bringing the old with the new. And we'll have the first ever, first ever drone show over the Atlantic, featuring 1000 drones, creating patriotic images hundreds of feet in the air. I cannot wait for that, that is going to be spectacular and a way to cap off an amazing weekend. So it's going to be incredible. But all I can say is, let's let the celebrations begin and let's let them start right here on Long Island.