WASHINGTON—On a cloudy Sunday in the nation’s capital, David Terenzoni and his wife were sightseeing when they surprisingly found themselves at the National Veterans Parade on Constitution Avenue.
Terenzoni, a Boston native, said he was pleased to see a large parade raising awareness for veterans; he served six years as a captain in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers after graduating from Norwich University.
“Veterans are special,” he told The Epoch Times. “It’s important that we recognize them.”
This year’s event, held on Nov. 9 in Washington, marked the third annual parade honoring the men and women who have served in the U.S. armed forces.
The nearly three-hour parade before Veterans Day featured lively marching bands, colorful floats, jeeps, and specialty vehicles. Veterans groups and other organizations from across the country took part in the celebration.
Gen. Michael Flynn, grand marshal of this year’s parade, told The Epoch Times that Veterans Day is a time to reflect on the “service and sacrifice” of those who put their lives on the line to protect the country.
Veterans Day is observed on Nov. 11 every year.
Flynn, a retired U.S. Army lieutenant general, said the day also reminds him of his family’s legacy. He said many of his relatives have served in various wars, including his grandfather, who is buried in Arlington and fought in World War I, World War II, and the Korean War.
Flynn briefly served as the national security adviser to President Donald Trump during Trump’s first term. He held intelligence and command roles in the U.S. Army, including combat assignments in Afghanistan and Iraq, for more than 30 years.
The Veterans Parade event began with a ceremony at the National Archives at 11 a.m., then moved down Constitution Avenue to the White House starting at noon.
Flynn noted that this year’s parade was funded through grassroots fundraising.
“We don’t get a dime from the government,” he said.
One of the speakers at the event was Army veteran Kyle Copeland, who said he took part in combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Boone Cutler, an Iraq veteran, started the initiative to encourage veterans to promise not to take their own lives and to reach out to a “battle buddy” for help during tough times. After Cutler died in September from health issues related to his military service, Copeland has continued his work.
“We lose over 22 vets a day to suicide,” Copeland told The Epoch Times.
He brought a sword—made from 25 pounds of steel taken from the ruins of the two World Trade Center towers—to the event.
“The sword is a symbol of what our country went through 25 years ago,” Copeland said. “It means a lot to me as a veteran, because I had to respond. I had to go to Afghanistan after 9/11.”
This year’s event was hosted by the National Veterans Parade Foundation, a nonprofit formed to promote veteran service organizations.
“This is a wonderful parade to honor the veterans,” said Judy Staveley from Maryland, who is a volunteer with Wounded Paw Project, one of the organizations at the event.
The project provides service dogs to veterans who need support for PTSD and other injuries that they suffered during war, she told The Epoch Times.
Staveley, a military veteran’s spouse, believes that it’s essential to help people remember service members’ sacrifices and keep the nation’s history alive.
The annual day to remember veterans started in 1919, when President Woodrow Wilson named Nov. 11 as the first Armistice Day. At first, it was a day to honor veterans of World War I. In 1954, after World War II, Nov. 11 became a day to honor all U.S. veterans.
In May, Trump said he would change the name of Veterans Day to “Victory Day for World War I.”
“We won both Wars, nobody was close to us in terms of strength, bravery, or military brilliance, but we never celebrate anything—That’s because we don’t have leaders anymore, that know how to do so! We are going to start celebrating our victories again!”
