LANCASTER – Ceremonies paying tribute to veterans and military service members are planned in both Palmdale and Lancaster this Tuesday, Nov. 11 to mark Veterans Day.
At 9 a.m., the Lancaster Cemetery District will host its annual ceremony in the Veterans Court of Honor, located at 111 E. Lancaster Blvd, Lancaster. This year’s event, titled “Honoring All Who Served,” will include a special presentation to Hometown Hero Honorees: Pat Weese (US Navy, 1961-1965) and Tracy May (US Army, 1967-1968).
Featured speakers will be Petty Officer 3rd Class Charles Navarro, staff assistant to Congressman Howard “Buck” McKeon, and Lt. Col. Traci Scott (retired), Commander of Joe Walker Middle School Civil Air Patrol Squadron 804.
The program will also include the presentation of the colors and flag salute by Joe Walker Middle School Civil Air Patrol Cadet Squadron 804, singing of the National Anthem led by Blue Star Mothers President Sylvia Gaxiola, and placing of the memorial wreaths by LCD Trustees Dave Owens, Bruce Macpherson, Richard Cook, Vicki Medina and Norm Hickling.
The ceremony is free and open to the public. View the entire program here.
Veterans Day Ceremony planned at Palmdale Amphitheater
At 11 a.m., the Antelope Valley Service Organization Association (AVSOA) will hold its annual Veterans Day Ceremony at the Palmdale Amphitheater, 2723 Rancho Vista Boulevard, in conjunction with the display of the Mobile Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall for the Antelope Valley (AV Wall).
Led by emcee Bobby Breech, the ceremony will feature remarks from Palmdale Mayor Jim Ledford; Highland High School Travel Ensemble will sing “God Bless America” and the “National Anthem”; Blue Eagles Honor Guard will do the Raising of the Colors; Highland High School Air Force JROTC will do the “Table of Honor Ceremony”; and Viola Lawrence with the Daughters of the American Revolution will read “What is a Vet?”
The Veterans Day Ceremony is free and open to the public. The AVSOA comprises more than 30 area service clubs and encourages the community to participate in their events.
The AV Wall is on display now through Tuesday, Nov. 11 at 11 p.m. at the Palmdale Amphitheater, 2723 Rancho Vista Boulevard in Palmdale. The public will have 24-hour-a-day access to the AV Wall while it is on display.
The AV Wall is one of only two mobile walls that are engraved, and the only one laid out in the same design as the original in Washington, D.C.
Measuring approximately 250 feet long and 6 feet high at its apex, it contains the engraved names of all 58,286 Vietnam veterans killed in action and missing in action.
–