 It is traditional that we start a ceremony, a commemoration at 11 a.m. on Veterans Day. So those who are here with us, welcome. Welcome to Howard Plant. Post-782, the Veterans of Foreign War, our ceremony here in the park. But this is not our ceremony. This is your ceremony. A Veterans Day is a time, it's a day where we're not here to honor those who have come before us who paid the ultimate sacrifice today. There's a time for that. But today, we honor the living. We honor those among us who've made different types of sacrifices. So I'm proud to be with you today. I am Reverend Mark Hughes. I am the commander of Howard Plant Post-782, Veterans of Foreign War. And before we go any further, I'm going to call upon our chaplain to open us in a word of prayer. Let's please bow our heads, dear Heavenly Father. Today we honor our Veterans, worthy men and women, who gave their best when they were called upon to serve and protect our country. We pray that you will bless them for their unselfish service in the continual struggle to preserve our freedoms, our safety, and our country's heritage for all of us. Bless them abundantly for the hardships they faced, for the sacrifices they made, for their many different contributions to America's victories over tyranny and oppression. We respect them. We honor them. We thank them, and we are proud of them. We pray that you will watch over these special people and bless them with peace and happiness. These things we pray in your name, amen. And now I call on my Senior Vice Commander, Comrade Bob Covey, to lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance. Veterans, please stand at attention. Hands salute. Repeat after me. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. Please join me in the national anthem. Colors, face, present, hall. I want to thank Larry Holt for joining us yet again. Just an amazing job every year that you do for us. So thank you so much for showing up, and we're not done with you yet. So don't go anywhere. So for those who have come today, it's important to understand not just the service members that are uniformed, that stand at the gates of freedom on a daily basis, but also those who support the uniform personnel as well. And I'm really honored and privileged to be side by side with one of my favorite people, the auxiliary president of post-782. And this is meat and potatoes. This is blocking and tackling, folks. This is where everything gets done, and this is where I'm really proud to introduce my friend and colleague, President Subranin. America without her soldiers would be like God without his angels. There is nothing nobler than risking your life for our country. I have long believed that sacrifice is the pinnacle of patriotism. The nation remains in the land of the free, only so long as it is the home of the brave. I would like to thank all veterans for your service. We've got a few pretty important folks that are here with us today, and I'm so proud that Senator Lay decided to stop in on his way home from the United States Senate. So I'm so happy that you're here, sir. We're looking forward to hearing from you. Before we go on much further, I would like to invite the mayor of the city of Burlington to the podium today. It's my great honor and privilege to introduce to you Mayor Earl Weinberger. Good morning, everyone. Let's see. Is it hearing anything from here? All right, we're going to go. We'll try to project. Thank you all for being here. I too want to say thank you to Larry Salt, who in addition to being a great trumpeter served for many years in the Department of Parks, Recreation and Waterfront, and he's flying those colors as well as recognizing America here today, and thank you to the VFW Post, 782, for bringing us together once again. I want to thank you all for joining us today and honoring the millions of Americans who have served in our armed forces. As mayor, it is always a great privilege to join you to reflect on Vermont's and Burlington's proud tradition of military service and the positive impact of that service on our community. To the veterans here with us and their families, on behalf of the people of Burlington, I say thank you for that service. Thank you for your sacrifice, and thank you for all you've done to keep this city safe. On Veterans Day, also remember my grandfather, Teddy, who served in World War II and was part of the successful campaign of the Allied Forces to retake France and then push the Nazis back towards Germany. He was five months into his European deployment on November 11, 1944, when my mother, Ethel, was born. Fortunately, Teddy survived the war and returned to America to prosper. He got to spend many happy years with his grandchildren. I was the oldest of many grandchildren, knew him well. However, he never got back that chance to be there for the birth of his first child. So many Burlingtonians, Vermonters, and Americans have such stories, and stories of far greater sacrifice. To our veterans, I share that I am moved by your stories, your service, and your commitment to our city, state, and country. Today, we honor and remember that service. The Howard Plant Post pulls us together like this twice a year on Veterans Day and Memorial Day, and I've been participating in these ceremonies now for more than a decade, and have often found it challenging standing here to fully evoke the connection between the prosperity we enjoy in this great community and America's military conflicts. The horrific battles that this country has faced in the deserts, on beaches, and in cities around the world, can feel very different at times, very distant at times from this beautiful place, much less so this year. Today, we gather at a time when war is once again raging in Europe. We gather a moment when once again it is very clear that sometimes all that separates us from a world dominated by tyrants and fascists is the willingness of free people to fight for liberty, justice, and democracy. You know, just before coming over here this morning, I saw a video of the Ukrainian flag flying once again in Kershan, the only regional capital that Russia had before today, been successful in capturing in nine months of fighting, the most significant city they've taken. The world is so much safer today. We are so much safer here in Burlington with President Putin humiliated and retreating than the world we would have been living in, had he been successful at claiming Ukraine by force quickly and easily. It is, of course, the men and women of Ukraine who are paying the ultimate sacrifice in this war against tyranny. However, we are standing with them in aid and in spirit, and we must continue to do so resolutely. And I'm proud to have a federal delegation that has been making sure that we are doing just that. The bravery and sacrifice of Ukrainians is a fresh reminder of how important it is that so many Americans are willing to wear the uniform and defend the values and safety of this country. So in conclusion, I say again, thank you to all our veterans, thank you to the families who have supported our veterans. We honor and appreciate your sacrifice. Thank you all and happy Veterans Day. What I just placed in Mero's hand was the Veterans of Foreign War 782 coin. It's our tradition to make sure that we're carrying a symbol of what we represent and offering it to our friends who support us. I think those of us who were in uniform or who were in uniform, a lot of times we would often challenge one another just to see whether or not you had a coin in your pocket. And if you didn't have one in your pocket, then you had to do push-ups, you know, so get a coin in your pocket. I'm really honored right now to introduce my favorite senator, a senator who has served longer than any senator ever, as far as I know. And maybe I don't know all of the homework, okay. I mean, yeah, Chuck Grassley went back and of course I'm from Iowa, but he doesn't even matter as much as you, okay. So good old Chuck. I will say this about you, sir, is I've only been in Vermont for 13 years and, you know, it has been a great pleasure to be here in this state knowing that you were holding it down for us in DC. Ladies and gentlemen, Senator Patrick Leahy, I wanted those before. When, when I gave the Reverend, excuse me, when I gave the Reverend was the President Pro Tem Challenge Coin. And when I became President Pro Tem and third line to the presidency, I thought I could have a coin. One side has the seal of the President Pro Tem. All my predecessors had put their face on the back. Well, I didn't want to do that. I said, can I put the seal of the state of Vermont on the back? They said, you're the President Pro Tem. You could put whatever you want. So you'll see there's a seal of the President Pro Tem on the front and the seal of the state in which I was born on the back. And I'm really honored to be celebrating this with you. I remember these celebrations, sometimes warm days, sometimes cold days, going back to my days as state's attorney here in Burlington throughout the 48 years in the Senate. And I've long admired it. I've always been touched as I watch the flag being saluted, just as I do when on Monday afternoon, as President Pro Tem, when I call the Senate to order and open the new session, and then I'll say, please stand. We cite the Pledge of Allegiance, and we always, everybody in the Senate chamber stands in attention and faces the flag. And when hearing the bugle, I've heard it all over Vermont and I've been touched. The sacrifice it represents, and I know in times when Marcel and I have been in Normandy. In Normandy, and I heard it played there, and we stood and looked over at gray stones up for Montrose, who served there before I was born. So in my service, will end in January. After 48 years, and I thank all of you for letting me have the privilege of being there. But I also know that in those 48 years we have seen so many things. We saw soldiers returning from Vietnam. I remember times when I was there. We also knew that doing that, just carrying for bodily wounds was not going to be enough. So in 1979, I created the first veteran senator in Vermont. I created here in Burlington. In 1989, after debating it for a couple years in the Senate to get the funding, we established the National Center for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. We headquartered at the VA in White River Junction. I was proud of that funding, but I was even more proud when we were able to make it permanent. And then we saw it with new scientific techniques brought renewed focus to PTSD because of a new generation serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. So I doubled the budget for the National Center for PTSD and established a brain bank for cutting edge research in a consultation program to make sure the providers provided the latest best practices. And then I saw the veterans who were exposed to toxins. I want to make sure they were cared for because in Vietnam, we had soldiers exposed to Agent Orange and dioxin and radiation. And I worked with you to get the funding for research into that. John Tracy, the head of my Vermont office, was in combat in Vietnam. And he and I and Marcel went to Da Nang where we saw the terrible example of Agent Orange there and got the funding to clear that up and came back and expanded funding here in the United States for our veterans. They all suffered for that. And Federal Burns Registry, I supported having that registry. Just as importantly, I supported making sure the money was there because I think everyone here probably knows somebody or knows somebody who knows somebody else who has suffered from these burn pits. I'm glad to see the Marines here. I think when our youngest son served in the Marines, I'm glad to see some of these burn pits being cleared up here in the United States where our son and others trained. And the PACT Act, when we passed that this year, it made it easier for veterans coping with the effects of toxic exposure to get the assistance from the Veterans Administration. We wanted to know just what this exposure meant. The families knew. They had seen it. They had felt it. We wanted scientifically there so that nobody in the VA could deny the funding to help on that. I know Senator Sanders. I was going to say Senator Welch. Congressman Welch, soon to be Senator Welch. And I'm delighted with that. I supported that funding. So we could start these fundings. I go back this coming week to make sure we get the year's budget through. I guarantee you this. The things that reflect what we owe our veterans, those who have suffered, the chairman of that committee, that money is going to be in there. I won't forget you. You don't forget our veterans and all of us should be proud. We're Americans and we're Vermonters. Thank you for having me here. Senator Leahy, thank you so much. We have also been graced by, by the way, I just wanted to give our commander emeritus or our past post commander a shout out. Kevin Fleming is right there. So I just wanted to just, yeah, you can clap if you want to. It's okay. I can't believe the Marines got a shout out from the senior senator, man. I'm just, I'm like, I'm like, what? Like, come on, man. I never explained it to our son, Mark Patrick Leahy. At least his name was Mark. So he must have been good people, but I'm just saying, you know, the Marines come and get a shout out. Kevin, it ain't right. It ain't right. So yeah, we want to take a listen to, and hear from Senator Sanders office. I was talking Beth in, she was on, everybody knows Beth Owady, right? She was on her way in today and she was running late. And I'm not really throwing her under the bus, but we had coordinated for her to get through that barricade up there, but she went to the other barricade. So she took her a little bit more longer. And I'm trying to embarrass her just a little bit, but not too much. But Beth is a great friend of ours, a great friend of the family and has been an awesome, awesome hand in the staff of Bernie Sanders office. Please welcome with me, Ms. Beth Owady. Good morning, everyone. I'll read a letter on behalf of Senator Sanders. Hello. Okay. I will do my best. The letter reads, Dear friends, I very much regret that I'm unable to join today's commemoration for a Veterans Day in Burlington. I want to thank the VFW post, 782 for organizing this event. Thank you, Commander Hughes. I want to thank everyone in Burlington for also gathering here this morning. It is heartening to see people of all ages, including youth, gathered to honor Vermont veterans. I appreciate the opportunity to thank all the veterans and their families here today, as well as the 38,000 veterans across our state and their families for their bravery and sacrifice. We owe you a tremendous debt of gratitude, which we will never truly be able to repay, especially as we commemorate Veterans Day. We must recommit ourselves to keep America's promise to you every day, just as you kept your promise to us. I believe that if someone takes an oath to serve their country, to go off to war, to risk their life, or risk coming home wounded in body or in spirit, that that government has a duty to make good on its commitment. That means making certain that veterans and their families get all the benefits they earned through their service on time and without delay. That means ensuring access to the best quality healthcare in this country that can provide by protecting and strengthening the Department of Veteran Affairs. And that means ensuring no veteran goes hungry or is forced to sleep on the streets. As a longtime member and former chair of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, it is my honor to do my very best to keep this promise. But we can always do better. I rely on you to share your experiences and perspectives to help me promote policies in Washington that reflect in the real needs of veterans and their families who stand by their side in service to our country. Veterans from local veterans, service organizations, to the VA Medical Center in White River Junction, to the seven community-based outpatient centers that serve Vermonters, the two vet centers, Vermont Office of Veteran Affairs, the Veterans Family Outreach Program, and State Veterans Home. Veterans throughout Vermont have a place to go when they need care, services, or just someone to talk to who understands their unique experiences. To all those here today, know that I and my staff are here for you and will help in whatever we can. On behalf of a grateful state, thank you for your service. Sincerely, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders. Thank you all for gathering here today. It truly means a lot to the senator and for our staff. Thank you so much for your service and all that you do for our community. It's very much appreciated. Thank you. We are also honored. I got a text from Congressman Peter Welsch just this this morning congratulating us on the work of Proposal to Abolishing Slavery and also just responding to the call that I placed into him the moment that I found out that he had been elected to Senator for the state of Vermont. So we are we're pleased to have Derek Blackwell Hunt with us today representing the Office of Congressman Peter Welsch. I would just say that the Congressman and I definitely have a long history since we've been doing the work in Vermont, not just through the VFW but in other endeavors. He we could not have a better person to step in the big huge shoes that are being left in the United States Senate. So we should all be very proud of him. Derek Blackwell Hunt. All right, I'm going to read some remarks on behalf of Peter. Understood. Dear friends, thank you for including me in today's event. I regret that I am unable to be with you today, this Veterans Day ceremony. It is my honor to remember and celebrate those who have served in the United States armed forces. Our veterans represent citizens from all walks of life. Men and women bound together by love of country, a desire to serve, and a commitment to the principles of freedom upon which our country was founded. Vermont has a long and proud history of service and sacrifice. When our nation is in danger, our citizens demonstrate tremendous vigor and commitment as Vermonters join and often lead the efforts to defend America and the ideals upon which it was founded. We are fortunate to have men and women willing to step forward, prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice for the benefits of you and me. I thank all of the veterans and their families here today for your service and sacrifice. This Veterans Day and every day, let us continue to honor their service with actions that fulfill our commitment to our troops, their families, and our veterans, and that are worthy of our grateful nation. Sincerely, Peter Welch. Thank you. We've got some, got a little fun that we're going to have today because again we are honoring those of us who are alive. This is not a funeral, y'all. So what we, what we came to do is, is to recognize all of the armed services, those who not have just who are part of the Veterans of Foreign Wars across the, did you know the Veterans of Foreign Wars was the oldest veteran service organization in the nation? Did you know that? So it's a, this is kind of a celebration, but did you know that post-782 is the oldest post in the state? Did you know that? 101 years? Did you know, no I won't do that to you. I'm not going to do that to you. Here's what we're going to do though is, is we're going to go back to Larry Chris for a minute and what we're going to do is we're going to go through the armed forces tribute, tribute. What I have is, is I, we have, we have all of the songs of all of the branches of the armed forces. For those of you who represent that branch when the song plays, just raise your hand, wave your hand or something like that. I'll tell you which one it was in case you have to figure it out. Larry Chris folks, of course our songs first, the army song. Who are you? Where are you at? That the army goes marching along. The next one? You recognize that one? How many people recognize that one? It's the Coast Guard song. They're right down the hill and just keep it going, Larry. Keep it going. Who's that? Who's here? Oh, we even got a hand clap there. It's the Navy song. Somebody's going like this out there. Other Navy folks in the crowd? Anybody know Navy folks? Does anybody care about Navy folks? Thank you for your service. Who had Air Force? Oolani. Who else? Air Force. Air Force. Everybody says they're the best one because they get taken care of the best. And finally, look at Kevin locked up. Got his heels locked. Thank you Marine Corps. Yes. Everybody give a hand for Larry's song and all of the armed forces, every single one of them. This is where we celebrate the service. We celebrate those who are living. We celebrate. We celebrate. We celebrate. Only in America, only in the United States of America can something this powerful bring people together from. I mean, who would think that a country boy high school dropout from Iowa could run into a Vermont boy, you know, who would end up being a specialist under gunfire in Vietnam and cause our past across and cause us to become to be able to develop a friendship and a relationship that would be unbreakable. And the list goes on and on and on. This is not just about where we send soldiers and where we deploy halfway across the globe, but this is also about bringing people together only in the military. Do you create brothers and sisters out of folks who've come from places that neither of them have any idea where the other one has come from only in America, only in the United States Army, only in the United States armed services. Do you see relationships like this that last for decades and then indeed sometimes generations because of our children as well, only in the armed forces. There are too many factors today, folks, that are causing us to be pulled apart and not to be pulled together. There are too many differences that we have amongst ourselves. This is a day, folks. This is a day that we can celebrate and we can come together. So I'm going to invite you down to the veterans of four war seven 82 over on South Winooski. After this ceremony, we're almost there. But think of this as a day of unity. Think of this as a time where we can come together. There is something people. There's something that we can unite around. And it is not a conversation that is red or blue. That is black or white. It is not a conversation that is left or right. This is where we all agree. We must support the people who fight for this nation. This is what brings us together. This is where our hope is. This is our promise. So as we close, what I'd like to do is, first of all, I do want to honor those who have come before us. Yes, this is a day for those of us who are alive. This is a day for those of us who made it out. This is a day for those of us who are still in uniform. Let us not forget the folks who are still serving in uniform, who are halfway around the globe right now, that private that's standing on on guard posts and in second AD on the DMZ in Korea right now. Somebody's hanging from a rope in Fort Campbell, Kentucky at of a UH 60 at 100 feet above the ground right now in Air Salt School. Right now, somebody's standing at the front gate of Lackland Air Force Base, and they've been awake all night. There are folks who are standing and keeping guard. They're gatekeepers for the freedom and liberties for us today right now. Let's not forget them. Let's not forget them. But let us not forget those who've come before us. Come in. Come ready. As we come to a closing, let's not forget it. Those who are alive. Those who are here. Those who made it. There's so many things that we can do to come together. Let's not just choose two days out of the year to do it. You know, let's not go halfway through this year again until we get back to Memorial Day. And this group, not somehow or another, acknowledge those of us who served. Sometimes it's an embarrassment when we come together when we haven't seen each other since the last time we've done this. We've got to spend more time with our veterans. We've got to spend more time supporting our posts, not just us, the American Legion, other service organizations. But what this day is really about, it's not about the service. It's about the people. It's about the people. Because under every single one of these covers, every single one of the every single branch that's represented here, there are individuals, people, and they come from different places and different walks in life. And they have something to contribute to this community. And they shouldn't have to wait until this day to be recognized or to be realized. And you shouldn't wait until this day to remember them. Remember them daily. Chaplain, come forward, please. This concludes our ceremony. I'd love to invite you down again to 176 South Winooski. Come on down. And I think that would be a better place, in fact, for us to do interviews and stuff like that. If y'all want to come on down to, we'll feed you. Food's free. So come on down there. And because that way we can clear out of here, we can get it moving. As the Chaplain, before the Chaplain goes into the final prayer, we're going to scratch that. 176 South Winooski. Thank you all for coming out. It's been a pleasure. Many of you have seen your faces around town. I hope I see more of you. Many of you are diehards. Don't forget to get your poppies. Don't forget to raise them up. Don't forget to get your poppies. If you're not wearing a poppy, you're wrong. Okay? You got to do push-ups if you don't have poppies on. Thank you, Senator Leahy. Thank you. She spent a month in the hospital teaching him how to walk, so I was just getting ready to break down crying for a minute though. So thank you all for coming out again. Please meet us down at the Veterans of Foreign Wars at 176 South Winooski. We're headed out right now. Don't move. We got to pray. Again, let's please bow our heads. Heavenly Father, as we go forth today to our homes and businesses, we offer gratitude for the extraordinary men and women who fight to protect the nation so that we can enjoy the freedom we so treasure. We humbly ask you to watch over these heroes, protect them, and bless them mightily for their endless sacrifices. Help us not to take our beloved veterans for granted. Rather, help us to honor them with unrelenting appreciation for their priceless service to this country. Rest well, veterans. You're in our prayers. Once again, these things we ask in your name, O Lord. Amen. How are we playing post 782? Veterans of Foreign War, attention, fall out.