Veterans Day is a time for gratitude

THE MON VALLEY’S MILITARY ROOTS run deep and our appreciation for those who served has endured for generations.

It’s always heartwarming to see so many people come together to cheer for the veterans as they pass by. For those who missed the annual Mon Valley Veterans Day parade in Roscoe on Saturday, there are several other veterans’ programs to attend today, including the following:

• Rededication ceremony for AP Delsandro Veterans Memorial, Donora Banquet Hall, 603 Meldon Ave., 9 a.m.

• The Mon Valley Honor Guard will conduct a brief ceremony to honor veterans at 11 a.m. at the gazebo in Chess Park in Monongahela.

• Veterans Day program (a multimedia presentation including band, orchestra and choir), McKeesport Area High School auditorium, 1960 Eden Park Blvd., McKeesport, 4 p.m.

• Veterans Day service (held by J. William Mc-Cauley Jr. Funeral Home), West Newton Methodist Church, 106 N. Second St., West Newton, 7 p.m.

• Veterans Day services at Charleroi honor rolls: Speers Hill, 9 a.m.; Fallowfield, 9:30 a.m.; North Charleroi/Lock 4, 10 a.m.; Charleroi, 11 a.m.; Dunlevy, noon.

• Veterans Day ceremony, Memorial Park, Lysle Boulevard, McKeesport, 10 a.m.

• Community lunch and program as part of Penn-West California’s Military and Veterans Appreciation Week, in the South Wing of the Convocation Center, 11:30 a.m.

In contrast with Memorial Day, which honors military personnel who died in service of their country, particularly those who died in battle or as a result of wounds sustained in battle, Veterans Day is a time of celebration.

This holiday honors everyone who has served in the military, whether or not they served in wartime or died in battle.

All the men and women being honored dedicated part of their lives to their country and the cause of preserving its freedom.

They have earned our gratitude and they deserve to see people show up to these events to show their support and respect for our nation’s heroes.

The wars in which many of them fought are now a distant part of history. But the battle for freedom is endless, and there are always new enemies who would like to see harm come to our nation.

Standing in their way are the same forces that defeated Hitler and imperial Japan in the 1940s, that faced off against communism during the Cold War and battled the terrorist menace in this century.

They are ordinary people who were willing to do their part to accomplish something extraordinary.

We hope the entire Valley will join us in thanking them for all that they’ve done on Veterans Day and every day.