A variety of activities are planned for those who wish to observe Veterans Day:
• A Veterans Day Pancake Breakfast will be held from 7-10 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 10 at Harbor Tower Village, 100 E Whidbey Ave., Oak Harbor. Admission is free for veterans, cost for all others is $5. In addition, a gift basket will be raffled. All proceeds from the raffle will go to the Help House food bank in Oak Harbor. Call 360-675-2569 for details.
• A Veterans Day ceremony is set for 10 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 10 at the Oak Harbor High School Performing Arts Center/Student Union to honor those who have served and those currently serving in the Armed Forces. The ceremony will feature guest speaker retired Rear Adm. Bill McDaniel, musical performances by the Daybreak Trio, First United Methodist Church Chancel Choir, Oak Harbor High School Harbor Singers and the All-Island Community Band. This event is sponsored by the Oak Harbor Area Council of the Navy League.
• Oak Harbor’s first-ever Veterans Day Parade will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 10 in downtown Oak Harbor. The parade will begin at the intersection of Midway Avenue and Pioneer Way and will proceed through downtown on Pioneer Way. Harry Ferrier, the remaining survivor of the World War II Battle of Midway, will be the grand marshal. Other parade participants will include Pearl Harbor survivors, women veterans of WWII, members of several veteran organizations, the Oak Harbor High School Band and many others.
• Members of Disabled Veterans of America Local Chapter 47 will conduct its annual “Forget Me Not” drive from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 11 at various locations throughout Oak Harbor. All money collected goes directly to the transportation program and the purchase of the DAV’s next van, which helps ferry local veterans to the Seattle VA hospital. Call 360-257-4801 for information.
• A Veterans Day Commemoration is set for 11 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 12 at Veterans Memorial Plaza adjacent to the Island County Courthouse.
–The annual event is organized by the Town of Coupeville and Central Whidbey Lions Club, and includes raising of the flags of the various branches of the armed services. Local elected officials and others will offer brief remarks, which will be followed by a program of patriotic music.
