Veterans Day events throughout the region
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| Betty Kanzler (left) seeks and offers comfort to her brother, Tom Whelan, during the unveiling during last year's Veterans Day of a plaque at Veterans Memorial Park in Dixon recognizing the six Lee County veterans who lost their lives in the Vietnam War. Whelan, of Dixon, served in the war. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com) |
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Veterans Day is Sunday, so many events will be held Monday.
State and federal offices and banks will be closed Monday. Driver’s license facilities normally closed on Monday, such as Sterling’s, also will be closed Saturday. Most public school schedules are not affected, but small businesses often close for the holiday, so it’s a good idea to call ahead.
The public is invited to a variety of Veterans Day observances planned across the Sauk Valley:
Albany
The Albany American Legion/Auxiliary Post 1079 annual Veterans Day dinner will be at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Legion Hall, 401 S. Church St.
All Whiteside County veterans are invited. All attending are asked to make reservations by Wednesday and to bring a dish to pass. Call Artie Burns, 309-887-4997, or Jill Seifried, 815-631-4819.
Ashton
A program begins at 10:30 a.m. Monday at the Mills & Petrie Building, 704 N. First St. Police Chief Darrell Farrenger, who served 28 years in the Marines, will speak, and there will be a rifle salute at 11 a.m. Call 815-761-4240 for more information.
Amboy
The Amboy American Legion will give a program at 10 a.m. Monday in the Amboy High School gym, 11 E. Hawley Ave. Call 815-857-3528 for more information.
Bureau Valley High School, Manlius
A Veterans Day program will be held at 8:30 a.m. Monday in the auditorium. Marine Capt. Michael Luke Goessman will speak, the school band and chorus will perform, and there will be a multimedia program. Call 815-445-4004 for more information.
Chadwick
There will be a speaker for fourth- through eighth-graders at 2:30 p.m. Monday at Chadwick Junior High School, 19 School St. Call 815-684-5191 for more information.
Dixon
• A Veterans Day celebration starts at 7:45 a.m. Friday at Lincoln Elementary School, 501 S. Lincoln Ave., with a color guard presentation at 7:50 a.m. at the flagpole. A 45-minute assembly with music, presentations and speakers follows in the gym.
• At 11 a.m. Sunday at Veterans Memorial Park, there will be an unveiling of a Purple Heart monument, an honor guard by the combined veterans organizations, and a Marine Corps 21-gun salute. Open houses follow at Dixon VFW Post 540, 1560 Franklin Grove Road, and the American Legion Hall, 1120 W. First St.
• Also Sunday, 10 percent of all proceeds at Culver’s, 1317 N. Galena Ave., will be donated to the park.
• Monday, Sauk Valley Community College will present Honoring Our Veterans from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the campus, 173 state Route 2. Military vehicles will be displayed, and military personnel and members of the Student Veterans Organization will be on hand. Raffle tickets will be sold from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., when four prize packages will be awarded. The grand prize is a 10-inch touchscreen Internet tablet. Proceeds also benefit Veterans Memorial Park. Call 815-835-6390 for more information.
Erie
A coffee reception for veterans will be from 9 to 10 a.m. Saturday at Erie Fire Station, 807 Ninth Ave.
Franklin Grove
Ben Enlow, who served in the Army in Iraq and is a former Ashton-Franklin Center Elementary School student, will speak from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Friday in the gym, 217 S. Elm St. Call 815-456-2325 for more information.
Fulton
A veterans’ and grandparents’ recognition day starts at 8 a.m. Friday at Unity Christian Elementary School, 1000 11th Ave., and Unity Christian High School, 711 10th St. Veterans, grandparents and the public can sign in from 8 to 8:30 a.m. at either school, and visit classrooms until 9:15 a.m. Refreshments will be served from 9:15 to 9:45 a.m. at the high school, followed by a chapel ceremony from 9:45 to 10:45 a.m. Students will be dismissed at 11:10 a.m. Call 815-589-3912 for more information.
Lanark
A breakfast for veterans, their spouses and spouses of deceased veterans will be at 7:30 a.m. Thursday at Eastland High School, 500 S. School Drive. Call 815-493-6341 to make reservations. An assembly begins at 8:30 a.m. in the high school gym. Lt. Col. Todd S. Reed, deputy commander and chief of staff for the Army Corps of Engineers Rock Island District, will discuss “The Importance of Observing Veterans Day.” Eastland students will perform patriotic music.
Milledgeville
A Veterans Day program will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday at Milledgeville High School, 100 E. Eighth St. There will be a speaker and music by the school band. Call 815-225-7141 for more information.
Morrison
American Legion Post 328 will have a memorial service at 1 p.m. Sunday at Grove Hill Cemetery Veterans Memorial on High Street. Call 815-772-0153 for more information.
Mount Morris
• A Veterans Day assembly will be at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in the David L. Rahn Junior High School gym, 105 W. Brayton Road. Army Brig. Gen. Steven Huber will speak.
• Junior high students are making holiday cards and care packages for troops. Needed are beef jerky, hard candy, individual flavor packets for water (not red), individually wrapped cookies and crackers, puzzle books and decks of cards. Donations can be dropped off at the junior high office. Call 815-734-4825 for more information.
Oregon
A service at VFW Post 8739, 1310 W. Washington St., starts at 10:15 a.m. Monday. Navy Master Chief (Ret.) Mike Barney will speak, the Oregon High School choir will perform, and the colors will be presented by local Boy Scouts and the FFA. A potluck lunch will be served. Call 815-732-6851 or 815-732-4477 for more information.
Polo
Children will eat breakfast with veterans from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m., followed by a program at 10 a.m. Monday at Centennial Elementary School, 308 S. Pleasant Ave. Call 815-946-3811 for more information.
Prophetstown
There will be an assembly at 2 p.m. Friday in the Prophetstown Elementary School gym, 301 W. Third St. The high school choral department will present a program with poems, music and recognition of veterans. American Legion Post 522 will post the colors, with help from Boy Scout Troop 94. Call 815-537-2345 for more information.
Rock Falls
A program featuring a speaker and color guard begins at 10:30 a.m. Monday at Veterans Park, at West Fifth Street and Galt Avenue, then soup and sandwiches will be served at Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5418, 217 First Ave.
Savanna
The Savanna VFW will have a speaker and a rifle salute at 11 a.m. Sunday at Savanna Public Library, 326 Third St.
Sterling
The Veterans Day program will be at 11 a.m. Monday at Grandon Civic Center downtown. The Sterling High School Band will perform, the Civil Air Patrol will be on hand and there will be a speaker. If the weather is bad, the program will be in Centennial Auditorium, 1608 Fourth Ave. Call 815-625-1091 for more information.
Tampico
• The Tampico American Legion ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. Sunday at Reagan Park at Main and Glassburn streets. There will be rifle salute, a prayer and taps. Call 815-438-5182 for more information.
• Monday, a Veterans Day assembly will begin at 10 a.m. at Tampico Elementary School, 202 W. Second St. The Tampico Lions Club, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts will take part. Call 815-438-2255 for more information.
