Oak Harbor, to the best anyone can recollect, has never had a Veterans Day parade. That is about to change.

Terry Lacey, a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7392 in Oak Harbor, is spearheading an effort to put together the first Veterans Day parade in Oak Harbor history.

“I was with the VFW Riders in Burlington for the Veterans Day parade last year,” Lacey said. “While we were all waiting we got to talking and wondered why Oak Harbor doesn’t have a parade.”

According to Lacey, the best answer he could get when he started looking into it was that November isn’t the best time of year for a parade, mostly due to the weather.

He didn’t think that was a big enough deterrent.

“Veterans die in all kinds of weather,” Lacey said. “And we can’t do a parade because it might be cold and rainy?”

“It’s always been surprising to me that Oak Harbor has not had a parade like this and I am glad to see that something will happen under Terry’s leadership and direction,” said Jill Johnson, Oak Harbor Chamber of Commerce Executive Director.

“The Chamber is behind him 100 percent and encouraged to see this initiative rise up from the community.”

So at 2 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 10, rain or shine, Oak Harbor will have its first Veterans Day parade. Organizational meetings have been underway for a couple of months, setting the groundwork for the first-of-its-kind event.

There are other Veterans Day parades in Western Washington, the closest being the one held each year in Burlington, and the largest being the one held annually in Auburn. That parade is hailed as the biggest Veterans Day parade west of the Mississippi.

“My goal is to see that this is the best parade that’s ever happened,” Lacey told those gathered for a planning committee meeting April 9 at the Oak Harbor Chamber of Commerce.

“We don’t want to take anything away from those other parades, but we hope to grow this into something people will really like,” he said.

“This parade will be different from Holland Happening and July Fourth in size and in its purpose,” said Johnson. “It’s not a come-one, come-all, showcase of the community like our other parades. It is designed to be smaller, respectful and its intention is to focus on honoring our veterans, not simply having a parade.

“Not to say it won’t be fun too,” continued Johnson. “If you are a motorcycle fan you won’t want to miss it.”

Preliminary plans call for members of the Marine Corps League to provide the color guard to lead the parade. Other elements already planned are the VFW’s Fallen Soldier banners and the 27 flags of the United States.

“At the last Burlington parade, the Fallen Soldier banners were the hit of the parade,” said Judy Leu, a VFW member and Army veteran who came from Renton to attend the planning meeting. Each of the banners was carried by an active duty Marine.

Lacey said entrants should be veterans or veterans groups and service organizations. He is hoping to have every branch of the military represented.

“We want to make sure it’s a veterans parade,” he said. “It’s a time to honor vets and that’s what it should be.”

The parade is scheduled for 2 p.m. to accommodate the traditional Veterans Day program put on by the Oak Harbor Area Council of the Navy League.

Preliminary plans call for the route to be the same as the Holland Happening parade, which starts on Pioneer Way and then turns down Bayshore Drive before winding back to Pioneer. Lacey said he hopes the timing will work for people who want to make a day of it on Whidbey Island.

“Maybe we can bring a little tourism to town,” he said. “We need to let people know now we’re doing it. If we can get the word out now we can draw them here in November.”

As for concerns about the weather … “We’ll ask for perfect weather and we’ll get what we get,” Lacey said. “Rain or shine, the event will go on.

“If 15 people show up, we’ll have a nice parade,” he continued. “If 500 show up, we’ll have a great parade.”

Get involved

Join the Veterans Day parade planning committee.

The group meets at 6:30 p.m. the second Monday of each month at the Chamber of Commerce building on Highway 20 in Oak Harbor.

Anyone interested in helping should contact Terry Lacey by email at
laceytdl@comcast.net.