By Dave Warner
The American Legion and VFW held their annual Veterans Day Ceremony in Eastern Park under blue skies but cold temperatures. Pete Atutis welcomed everyone and gave the opening remarks, while David Teal reminded everyone of the day’s meaning.
“Eight percent of the American population are Veterans. So if you take 350 million people in the United States, that’s about 22 million people that are Veterans,” he said.
“For me it’s a very important day, and it’s one that we as Veterans can take pride in,” stated Teal.
Mayor-elect Deborah Kaufman spoke next about who these people were and said, “These men and women were ordinary people… until they heard the call of duty and answered it. They left their families … their homes … and their lives … not for recognition or fame or even the honor we bestow upon them today. They fought to protect our country … to maintain our way of life.”
“I stand here before you today, not as a Veteran, but as a daughter and a wife of two amazing United States Air Force Veterans…my heroes,” Kaufman stated.
She went on to talk about her father and husband and recited a memory each of them had given her. “It turns out, they are ordinary people that you pass every day on the street and would never guess they were so exceptional. My Dad was a plumber, and my husband a newspaper publisher and entrepreneur.”
Kaufman continued, “Our fight to defend liberty and our American way of life is far from over. And while their service may be over, these same veterans around this park, young and old, would be the first to step up and defend our freedom once again without a second of hesitation. As a country, as a city, we owe a massive debt to our Veterans.”
“Let us continue to honor them every day by living our best lives in the freedom they protected,” she stated.
