Aurora will honor on Veterans Day the heroes who bravely served our country and returned home to continue serving in many ways throughout the community.
With the theme ‘Serving Our Country and Our Community,’ the annual Aurora Veterans Day parade will begin at 10:15 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 11, from Benton Street and Broadway Avenue. It will conclude at the GAR Memorial Hall, 23 E. Downer Place, where veterans, parade participants, and guests, will convene for a tribute ceremony.
The Veterans Day ceremony will feature remarks by Aurora Mayor Richard C. Irvin, a U.S. Army veteran, and other veterans; a roll-call of military branches; and a military salute on the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month to commemorate the armistice agreement that ended World War I.
“It is always one of my greatest honors to recognize our veterans who sacrificed so much for our country and continued to serve when they returned home,” said mayor Irvin who served in Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm. “This year, as we honor all veterans for their service, we are also shining a spotlight on women veterans in our community.”
In honor of the 35th Anniversary of Public Law 610, the bill signed in 1986 to authorize the establishment of the Military Women’s Memorial in Washington, D.C., leading this year’s parade as grand marshals will be a unit of women veterans, including State representative Stephanie Kifowit, City officials, public safety officers, and business owners.
Cecilia Lopez Leyva, the mother of fallen US Marine Corporal Sara Medina, will represent her daughter in the grand marshal’s unit. An East Aurora High School graduate, Medina was killed in 2015 while on duty in Nepal, India.
Parade units will feature local veterans organizations, including the Aurora Veterans Advisory Council, the Roosevelt-American Legion Post 84, the Walter E. Truemper American Legion Post #1944, AMVETS Post #103, the Fox Valley Marine Corps League, Toyota Veterans Association, Fox Knoll Veterans, Daughters of the American Revolution Aurora Chapter, and the City of Aurora Veterans-Employees.
In addition, the parade will include youth groups, such as the Marmion Academy Flannigan Rifles, the Mooseheart ROTC, the East Aurora NJROTC and Marching Band; public safety agencies such as the Aurora Police Department, the Aurora Fire Department, and the Kane County Sheriff’s Department; and additional local organizations and clubs.
The Veterans Day parade will begin at the intersection of Broadway and Benton, go north on Broadway to Downer, go west on Downer to the GAR Memorial Hall, 23 E. Downer Place.
—City of Aurora government