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The cities of LaFayette, Lanett and Valley will each be hosting a Veterans Day program this year. On Saturday morning, LaFayette will have a mile-long parade ending at the Health and Wellness Center. At 11 a.m. on Monday, the City of Lanett will have a program inside the council chamber at city hall. American Legion Post 67 will be hosting a program in Valley. If the weather is good it will be taking place in Veterans Park in Langdale; it its raining it will be indoors at Valley Community Center.

The City of Lanett will be honoring 15 employees of the city who are veterans. Mayor Jamie Heard will present each one of them a certificate. Another employee, Sgt. Dwayne Fears of the Lanett Police Department, will sing the National Anthem. The Lanett High JROTC honor guard will present the colors. They are under the direction of Lt. Col. (ret.) Christopher McKinney, senior Army instructor.

The guest speaker for the day will be Col. (ret.) J. Bradford Lynn, member at large of the Civil Air Patrol Board of Governors. Lynn is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, the Air Force Reserves and has been a captain for United Airlines, primarily flying international routes. He has also served as a pilot instructor.

Tommy Weldon will close the program by playing Taps on trumpet. A lunch catered by Terri’s Mill Village Cafe will follow.

“We always like to have our Memorial Day and Veterans Day programs in Veterans Park,” said Post Commander Lanny Bledsoe. “We want to thank the City of Valley for keeping the park the beautiful, serene setting it is. What is really special about Veterans Park are the four monuments that contain the names of 93 local men who gave their lives in World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and in the Afghanistan and Iraq wars.”

Post Adjutant Sammy Newton will be the guest speaker for the day. He will be talking about his service in the U.S. Army. After graduating from Valley High in 1968, he joined the Army. He served in the infantry in the Vietnam War from December 1969 to February 1971.

“It really gets me when I see the Vietnam Memorial in Veterans Park,” he said. “There are two names on it of men who died in Quang Tri province. That’s where I served. I have had a good life and am so glad I made it back home. It always saddens me to think of those who did not.”

Newton retired from the Army after 20 years of service. He also served in the National Guard for seven more years. He often speaks about his years in the Army at history classes at local schools.

The Legion will be thanking local Kia suppliers Ajin and Wooshin in the Monday program. “We have invited Human Resources Manager David Wilkerson to be there,” Bledsoe said. “We want to thank him on behalf of the company for what they do in recognizing local men who served in the Korean War. We also want to thank them for presenting the Legion their Eagle Award.”

The first celebration using the term “Veterans Day” took place in Birmingham, Ala. in 1947. World War II veteran Raymond Weeks organized a “National Veterans Day” event to honor U.S. veterans of all wars. It included a parade and other festivities. From the end of World War I up until that time, the observance had always been called Armistice Day. World War I ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918.