LAUGHLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Texas – Various community natives joined military members from past wars to today’s aviators to honor this year’s Veterans Day ceremony in Del Rio, Texas.
The keynote speaker, Col. Todd Dyer, 47th Flying Training Wing vice commander, took a moment to express his thoughts on the significance of the day, and the importance that it has not only to him but to all American citizens.
“Without the veterans of the American Revolution, there would not even be a United States of America,” Dyer said. “Without the veterans of the Civil War—who fought on either side for what they believed in—the strong united America we know today might never have been possible. Without the World War II veterans, we might be living in a country where freedom of choice or the right to vote does not exist. And without those currently fighting the War on Terrorism, we would be living in constant fear or simply, without freedom.”
For Dyer, Veterans Day is more than an observance, and it’s more than a three-day weekend from school and work, a day to be thankful for those who served and those who will.
U.S. Air Force Retired Maj. Gen. Gerald Prather; Bruno Lozano, Del Rio mayor; and Efrain Valdez, Val Verde county judge, were among those who took a moment to address those in attendance and honor the day and the significance behind it.
To conclude the ceremony, Robert Wade, 47th Force Support Squadron chief of manpower flight, sang “God Bless the U.S.A.”