Veterans Day ceremonies
Carmichaels American Legion Post 400 will host a service at 11 a.m. Friday that will feature a 21-gun salute to honor for those who have died.
The program will move inside, with the Legion band performing, along with the presentation of the MIA and POW Table by Cmdr. William Ross. A luncheon will follow.
In addition, a U.S. Marine Corps birthday party featuring a special ceremony will be held at 8 p.m. Nov. 10 at the Carmichaels VFW. All U.S. Marines and U.S. Navy veterans are invited.
• Howe United Methodist Church, 519 Dally Road, Coal Center, will hold a rededication ceremony for its honor roll that was damaged by vandals at 8:30 a.m. Sunday.
The names on the honor roll represent veterans who were members of Howe Church and served during World War I, World War II and Korea. The church is adding the name of Dennis K. Walker, who received the Distinguished Service Cross for his service in Vietnam. Refreshments and a worship service will follow at 9 in the church.
• Roscoe Sportsmen’s Association, 1069 Sloan Lane, Coal Center, will open at 11 a.m. Saturday. The flag ceremony starts at noon.
Military skill shooting will be held from 1 to 4 p.m., and an MIA remembrance ceremony will begin at 2 p.m. Boy Scouts will retire the flag at 3.
The association will provide a free dinner and beverage to each veteran, with food available for purchase for other guests.
Former Carroll Township resident John F. Gonzales, a U.S. Air Force colonel, will serve as parade marshal of the Washington County Veterans Day parade Saturday in Donora.
Gonzales leads a team responsible for interagency planning and strategies in Iran, Iraq and Syria. He was commissioned at the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. He and his wife, Nicole, have five children. The parade will begin at 3 p.m. and will follow McKean Avenue from Third to Eighth streets. Units are instructed to line up at 2 p.m. at Third Street and Meldon Avenue.
Observances will start at 11 a.m. at the A.P. Delsandro Memorial at Sixth Street and Meldon Avenue.
In addition, the Donora Historical Society will display parts of its World War II collection, including a trunk carried by Dr. Edward Roth when he served in World War II, and it’s filled with socks, underwear, religious material and other items carried in the war by Edward Huhra, who was a mechanic in a bomber squadron.
The society also will have a presentation on local veterans at 1:30 p.m. at its Donora Smog Museum, McKean Avenue and Sixth Street.
Jefferson Township Historical Society will hold a Veterans Day service at 6 p.m. Friday at the White Church on Fire Road, Eldersville.
Retired Maj. Loretta B. Kendall, a native of the McDonald area who grew up on a dairy farm in Oakdale, will be guest speaker.
Kendall enlisted as an E-1 with the 112th Tactical Fighter Group Air National Guard in 1983 in Pittsburgh and was assigned as a supply technician.
She later became a paralegal with the 171st Air Refueling Wing in Pittsburgh, and eventually was the first female chief master sergeant (E-9) in Pennsylvania in the legal field. After completing law school, she was selected to be an officer in the Jag Corps. Kendall was the first E-9 to become an officer in the Air Force and the Air National Guard. In 2000, Kendall was deployed to Kosovo.
Later, she served as staff judge advocate for the 167th Air Lift Wing in the West Virginia Air National Guard for eight years until her retirement in December 2014.
The service also will honor Judy Cooper, a longtime member of the historical society, who died Sept. 11. Her son, Matthew Cooper, will speak about his mother’s dedication to veterans.
For more information, call 727-947-9782.
Filer-Sadlek Post 954 in Jefferson will hold its annual Veterans Day Parade at 10:45 a.m. Friday.
Participants will assemble at the Jefferson fire hall. Those who are unable to march can either ride or gather at the Jefferson Senior Center.
The first stop of the parade will be in front of American Legion at 11, with the honor guard providing a 21-gun salute. The parade will proceed to Jefferson-Morgan Junior/Senior High School, where a program will be held in the auditorium at 11:30. Speaker will be Dave Coder, a veteran and Greene County commissioner.
Following the program, the post will conduct a Post Everlasting Ceremony, remembering eight members of Post 954 who have passed away since Veterans Day 2015.
Veterans and their family members from the Marianna area have shared photos to help Highland Brethren Church create a video presentation set to music to honor current and former military personnel. All branches of the service are represented, with photos dating back to the Civil War.
The video will be featured at the church’s 10 a.m. service Sunday, and again at 2 p.m. The church is located on Highland Ridge Road, Marianna.
For more information or directions, call 724-809-7462.
Monongahela Veterans Council will hold Veterans Day ceremonies at 10 a.m. Friday in Chess Park, Monongahela. Attendants should arrive by 9:30.
Participating in the annual service will be the Mon Valley Leathernecks, Shipmates and members of American Legion Posts 302, 613 and 949 and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1409.
The program will open with invocation by the Rev. Bill Bailey of Journey by Grace Church, followed by the National Anthem featuring Kim VanVooris.
Guest speaker will be Susan Meighan, director of Veterans Affairs for Washington County.
The benediction will be delivered by the Rev. Richard Bass of Holy Tabernacle of God in Christ, and the Mon Valley Honor Guard will provide the rifle salute and taps.
Albert Gallatin Amedisys Hospice will hold its annual Veterans Day service at 2 p.m. Friday in the courtyard at Uniontown Mall, 1368 Mall Run Road.
The event will include a local junior ROTC of the AmVets Honor Guard, state Sen. Pat Stefano, R-32nd District, and Fayette County Commissioner Vince Vicites.
All names of veterans placed on the memory tree will be read, and every veteran who attends will receive a flag pin.
Washington
• Edwin Scott Linton American Legion Post 175, 168 Park Ave., Washington, will hold a Veterans Day program at 10 a.m. Speaker will be Navy veteran Angie Mattes. Gold Star Mother May Brock also will attend.
For more information, call Adjutant Deb Williams at 724-222-9912.
• Laboratory Prebyterian Church, 33 Manse St., Washington, will hold its annual Veterans Day dinner Saturday in fellowship hall.
Fellowship will begin at 5:30 p.m., followed by dinner at 6 and a veterans music program at 7:30. Music will be provided by Circle of Faith praise band. Tickets are $10 for adults and $4 for 4- through 10-year-olds. Children younger than 4 are free, and all veterans will receive a free dinner. Proceeds benefit the LPC Youth Group.
Tickets can be purchased by calling the church office at 724-222-5630.
• Members of the Washington High School student council will host the annual Veterans Day program at 2 p.m. Friday in the main gymnasium. The event is open to all veterans, their families and the community of Washington.
Guest speaker will be Lt. Cmdr. Sarah Cottrill, an alumna of the Washington School District who is working as a U.S. Navy judge advocate. In addition, students will recognize all veterans and conduct a flag processional with patriotic songs performed by the high school band and chorus.
West Brownsville American Legion Post 940, 800 Middle St., will serve a free pancake breakfast from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturday to all veterans.
Members of the post and the ladies auxiliary will leave at 1 p.m. for the Veterans Day parade in Donora, which begins at 3 p.m.