On Saturday, people young and old will line up along Downtown Hilo streets for the 10 a.m. start of the eighth annual Hawaii Island Veterans Day Parade to honor all veterans, celebrate community service and inspire people to serve others.
On Saturday, people young and old will line up along Downtown Hilo streets for the 10 a.m. start of the eighth annual Hawaii Island Veterans Day Parade to honor all veterans, celebrate community service and inspire people to serve others.
The parade grand marshal will be Army National Guard Maj. Gen. Arthur “Joe’ Logan, the adjutant general for the State of Hawaii, Department of Defense. Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary Post 3830 will serve as the parade community marshal.
“They (Logan and the VFW post) are two of many great examples in this parade of individuals and organizations making a difference every day to benefit us all,” said retired Army Col. Deb Lewis, parade committee chairwoman and combat veteran. “This event was created to celebrate service, and we have lots of reasons to get excited watching the parade.”
Lewis encourages everyone to bring friends and family, thank the veterans who sacrificed for the country, cheer for parade participants and learn more about and connect with people making a difference every day on the island.
Expect lots of surprises and great additions in this year’s parade. A preview of parade details and marching units is available online at www.hivetparade.org. There will be parade announcers at two locations: on Keawe Street near the Hilo Farmers Market (just outside Pineapples restaurant) and along Kamehameha Avenue at the official reviewing stand area near the soccer field entrance.
At the recent 19th annual Veterans Appreciation Service at Honpa Hongwanji Mission in Hilo, retired Army National Guard Lt. Col. Delbert Nishimoto, the late Sen. Daniel Inouye’s former East Hawaii representative, reminded everyone, “Our nation is as strong as the people who are willing to serve in the Armed Forces, ready to put themselves in harm’s way to preserve, defend and uphold our country’s principles of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
Local farmer and businessman Richard Ha, who served in Vietnam as an Army captain and who remains engaged with island issues, said it best at the University of Hawaii at Hilo’s recent Vietnam War 50th anniversary commemoration ceremony. In his talk, Ha emphasized respecting each other, no matter the situation or topic, is essential, and it requires us to remember “it’s all about all of us, not just a few of us.”