Durango will mark Veterans Day with fireworks and a community celebration at the Durango Transit Center after the annual parade on Main Avenue, and several events will be held at Fort Lewis College.
The VFW will place flags on Main Avenue at 6 a.m. and sponsor the parade.
Participants will gather for check-in at 10 a.m., at the corner of East Third Avenue and College Drive, and the parade will start at 11 a.m. on Main Avenue, from College Drive to 14th Street.
Open houses will be held after the parade, at 12:30 p.m., at the VFW, 1550 Main Ave., and American Legion, 878 East Second Ave.
To volunteer as a crossing guard at the parade or for more information, call Terry Saxon at 588-3344.
The afternoon community celebration will honor veterans and acknowledge first responders that fought the Lightner Creek Fire in early July. The fire burned 412 acres a couple miles west of city limits.
“We came out of the Lightner Creek Fire much better than we could have,” said Mike Kelly, community events supervisor for the city.
Fire and extremely dry weather prompted the decision to delay the fireworks show planned for July 4.
The fireworks show sparked the idea for the community celebration that will start at 3 p.m.
The Cannondolls plan to perform for most of the afternoon until the fireworks start at about 5:30 p.m.
Representatives for the Veterans of Foreign Wars and other local leaders are expected to speak at 4:30 p.m., Kelly said.
For kids, there will be a strider bike park with wooden ramps and science experiments put on by the Powerhouse Science Center, he said.
First responders are also expected to bring rescue vehicles for kids to see, he said.
The VFW will be selling beer as a fundraiser and food vendors will include Authentic Alaskan Reindeer Redhots and KSUT.
Some seating will be provided for the concert and the fireworks. But residents are encouraged to bring their own chairs.
The annual Veterans Day Parade will start at 11 a.m. Saturday at College Drive and Main Avenue.
The parking lot at the Transit Center will close at noon ahead of the afternoon community celebration, Kelly said.
Several events will also take place at Fort Lewis College on Friday.
At 7:30 a.m., a Missing Man Table ceremony will take place. The ceremony honors the memory of fallen, missing or imprisoned military service members.
From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the lobby of the Student Union, people will be able to write their memories of veterans in their lives and add it to an honor board.
At 12:10 p.m. at the Clock Tower, there will be a reveille and taps program. Political science professor Byron Dare, who also is a Light Infantry Vietnam veteran, will speak.
Later in the day, the film “Blood Stripe” will be shown at 6:30 p.m. in Chemistry 130. The film stars Kate Nowlin and explores the challenges a Marine sergeant faces when she returns to a small town in Minnesota after three tours of duty in Afghanistan. After the film, Veterans Affairs Readjustment counselor Robert Lewis will speak.
mshinn@durangoherald.com
