Events planned around Aurora area to salute Veterans Day

A variety of events are planned to honor Veterans Day in the Aurora area.

Aurora will hold its annual Veterans Day parade on Monday.

The parade, which will feature a variety of units, will begin at 10:15 a.m. at Benton and Water streets, travel north to Downer Place, and then west on Downer Place to the GAR Memorial Hall at 23 E. Downer Place, where veterans, parade participants and guests will convene for a tribute ceremony, which will include a keynote speech from former U.S. Army private first class and former prisoner of war Jessica Lynch.

The ceremony will feature a military salute on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month to commemorate the armistice agreement that ended World War 1, a roll-call of military branches, a presentation of awards of meritorious service to Aurora veterans and special remarks from Lynch, city officials said.

The village of North Aurora will hold its annual Veterans Day ceremony at 11 a.m. on Monday at the North Aurora Veterans Memorial at Willow Way and Farview Drive.

After the ceremony, everyone is invited to the North Aurora Police Department at 200 S. Lincolnway for refreshments, event organizers said.

Waubonsee Community College will host a Veterans Day observance from 11 a.m. to noon on Monday in the Academic and Professional Center at Waubonsee’s Sugar Grove campus, Route 47 at Waubonsee Drive. The community event is free and open to the public, college officials said.

The annual St. Charles Veterans Day ceremony will begin at 10:30 a.m. on Monday at Fire Station 1, 112 N. Riverside Ave.

The ceremony will include the singing of the national anthem followed by an invocation, remarks, a gun salute and a performance of taps.

“On Veterans Day we gather as a community to say ‘thank you’ to our veterans for their selfless service to our country,” said St. Charles Mayor Lora Vitek in a press release about the event.

In Yorkville, an event will be held on Sunday to honor veterans.

Several area veterans will speak about their experiences in military service during a program Sunday at the Chapel on the Green at 107 W. Center St. in Yorkville.

Veterans scheduled to speak include Art Killey, who served in the Navy from 1958 to 1962 and Navy Reserves from 1962 to 1983; Bob Meyer, Air Force, 1963 to 1967; Wendell Dominy, Army, 1965 and 1966; Steve Bailey, Marines, 1967 to 1969; Wayne Johnson, Army, 1969 to 1971; Larry Eichelberger, Air Force, 1971 to 1974; Paul Burd, Coast Guard, 1972 to 1976; and Carol Ginger Schulz, Air Force Reserves, 1978 to 1986.

In addition, family members of Frank Zirzow Jr. will tell the story of his service in the U.S. Navy from 1941 to 1945, event organizers said.

The free program, which is open to the public, begins at 2 p.m. Doors will be open at 1 p.m. for visiting and viewing military memorabilia.

The program will be followed by refreshments and time to visit and tour the historic Chapel on the Green building, according to event organizers.