Parading for Veterans

Nashua, NH, held its annual Veterans Day parade yesterday. It started at 11:11 am, which marks the exact time and date when WW I official ended with the signing of the armistice on November 11, 1918 on the 11th hour of the 11h day of the 11th month. 

The marchers gathered in Holman Stadium then proceeded a short distance to the main parade route on Main St. The parade had been cancelled in 2023 due to bad weather. It usually lasts about 15 minutes with a luncheon for participants afterwards.

Start of the parade down Main Street, Nashua, NH

There is no apostrophe in Veterans Day as this day doesn't belong to a single veteran (veteran’s) or multiple veterans (veterans’) as a possessive apostrophe would signify. It is a day for honoring all veterans, no apostrophe is required.

Local police and fire members are always in the lead 

Veterans Day (originally Armistice Day) is a federal holiday in the U.S. observed annually on November 11th to honor military veterans. It was renamed in 1954 after President Dwight Eisenhower signed a bill rededicating it after the return of service personnel from WW II and the Korean War. Federal and state offices are closed as are post offices and banks. Most schools are also closed although it's not a requirement.

These participants dressed in period costumes 

The widespread use of the poppy flower to commemorate veterans began in WW I. Moina Michael, an American woman, was inspired by the 1915 poem In Flanders’ Fields, written by Canadian soldier and physician, Major John McCrae. In this poem, McCrae described the poppies that blow between the crosses, row on row, a reference to the blood-red flowers that sprang up among the soldiers’ graves. Michael sold poppy flower corsages to raise money for veterans and their families.

School bands from Nashua schools 

The first Veterans Day celebration took place in Birmingham, AL, in 1947 when Raymond Weeks, a WW II veteran, organized a National Veterans Day celebration. This event which took place on November 11 included a parade and other festivities to honor veterans.

The parade included several vehicles, but is mostly a pedestrian event 

It wasn't always celebrated on November 11. In 1968, Congress passed the Uniform Holiday Bill. This bill assigned the fourth Monday of October as the date for Veterans Day, but many states disapproved of this decision. In 1975, President Gerald Ford returned Veterans Day to November 11.

This young lady received a lot of applause as she twirled down Main St 

In 2016, President Barack Obama signed the Veterans Day Moment of Silence Act. Each Veterans Day at 2:11 p.m. EST, the current president will order a moment of silence lasting two minutes.

Parade viewers included family groups, local schools closed for the day 

NYC hosts the nation's largest and oldest Veterans Day parade with a procession along Manhattan's Fifth Avenue. An estimated 20,000 marchers were expected to participate this year. The city hosted the first parade to honor veterans on September 10, 1919. It was called the Victory Parade and celebrated Army Gen. John J. Pershing and 25,000 soldiers. 

Just a couple of the various youth organizations 

Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, DC, is the central location for official and national ceremonies dedicated to Veterans Day. Ceremonies are held at the memorial amphitheater, where the Tomb of the Unknowns is located.

Muskets were fired several times along the parade route 

Other countries including the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia also honor veterans on or near November 11 where this day of commemoration is called Remembrance Day. There are similarities and differences between these observances and America's Veterans Day.

Your turn — Did any observances take place in your state or country ?