High Country Set to Honor Veterans

Veterans Day November 11

Story by Jason Gilmer

What started as a remembrance for one war has turned into a day to honor all who have served in the armed forces.

Across the country on Wednesday, November 11, there will be ceremonies, parades and speeches to honor America’s veterans.

In the High Country, two events will take place in observance of Veterans Day.

The 11th day of the 11th month is proclaimed Veterans Day because it is the date that the last shots were fired in World War I. First called Armistice Day, it was changed to honor all veterans in 1954 after World War II and Korea.

As of November 2008, there were more than two million World War II, two million Korea War, seven million Vietnam War and two million Desert Storm veterans still alive.

In total, more than 23 million veterans of war and peacetime are still alive in the country, according to the United State Department of Veterans Affairs.

November 11 is the day to stop and thank those veterans for honoring their country.

The High Country chapter of the Military Officers Association of America is sponsoring a 10:30 a.m. program in Boone Mall, located at 1180 Blowing Rock Road.

The Watauga Community Band will perform music from the World War II era, there will be a guest speaker and then at 11:11 a.m. church bells across the county will ring.

“I think there’s two reasons to celebrate Veterans Day,” said Nick Friedman, who is helping put on the event. “First, they deserve it, especially those who fought in World War II and Korea. The other reason is it also honors the men and women still in uniform today and in harm’s way.”

Because kids are out of school for the day, Friedman said he hoped that families would come to the event to celebrate veterans.

He said that veterans from the different associations in town would be on hand.

After the ceremony inside, local Girl Scouts will be there to retire old American flags and dispose of them. Friedman said that anyone with a damaged flag can bring it that morning to be retired.

This is the second year of the event and Friedman said he was happily surprised with the large number of veterans who were at the program.

For more information about the event, contact Friedman at 828-297-5198.

Another event happening in town will be on the ASU campus.

At 7:30 a.m. at the Veterans Memorial, which is located on the west side of the Dougherty Administration Building, the ceremony will begin.

The event’s guest speaker will be retired Lt. Col. Ron Branch, who is currently the general manager of University Highlands student apartments. He is a former chair of the ASU Department of Military Science and Leadership.

During his 24-year career in the service, he was on assignments in Korea and Germany and many stops throughout the country.

A continental breakfast will follow in the Dougherty Administration Building lobby.

For more information on this event, click to www.news.appstate.edu/2009/11/03/veterans-day-4/.

Video Project for Veterans to Begin Soon
A local author plans to recreate a video project for veterans in Boone in the coming months.

Ken Wiley, a World War II veteran, helped set up video interviews with more than 150 veterans in Mountain City, Tenn., and the videos are archived in the town’s library.

“I think every veteran deserves it,” Wiley said. “We’re doing this for the veteran and for the community.”

Wiley said he plans to work with the local American Legion and VFW to set up interviews and plans are to house the videos in the ASU library, he said.

There will be no charge to the veteran to do the video.

Wiley said that seeing the veterans do the interviews was a great treat.

“It makes them feel alive again,” he said. “They’re families are proud of it and the veterans are proud to have it in their town library.”

The plan is that the stories that are shared will be available for future generations to watch and learn from.

While there is no way to get all of the veterans interviewed, Wiley hopes to talk with as many as possible in the High Country.

For more information, call Wiley at 828-264-4724.