Harrisburg, Pa. - There were events across the midstate to remember and honor troops on Veterans Day. Some remembered the heroics and struggles of veterans, while others praised the efforts of current service members.

Hundreds of people gathered early Tuesday at the York Expo Center to honor veterans. York County's Director of Veterans Affairs Philip Palandro said the county has 37,000 veterans. At an annual breakfast, York County residents supported them.

"It's days like today that are made possible because of men and women in uniform," Palandro said.

As food flowed, so did stories.

"We had 15 torpedoes go underneath our ship by three feet in one night," a World War II vet said.

A Vietnam vet said, "Our helicopter got shot down. I ended up in the hospital."

There was a moment of silence at all Harrisburg Area Community College campuses for veterans, prisoners of war, those missing in action and current students who are veterans or currently serving in the military.

"People forget that people are out there. They're fighting," said organizer and veteran Benjamin Ledwig. "They're living their lives in dirt holes without their families, missing their newborns being born."

First Presbyterian Church in Carlisle dedicated four new gravestones. Church members discovered the graves a few years ago.

"These four were from the Revolutionary War era as are some of the other soldiers buried here," said Rev. Jon Black.

After church members discovered the graves, they compared them with church and county records. Now there are permanent markers for privates James Kenny, John Anderson, James Carothers and John Dunbar.

"It's important because they're part of our heritage and our own history. We are tied to them in many, many ways," Black said. "If it weren't for them, we wouldn't be gathered here this afternoon to make this dedication."

In Dauphin County, Major General Randy Marchi told the Colonial Park Rotary that 14,000 Pennsylvania National Guardsmen and women are currently serving.

"The veterans today are following in footsteps of veterans in the past," Marchi said. "They're young men and women but they're mature men and women."

Marchi called today's service members "trusted warriors and protectors." They serve in combat zones and also in peacekeeping and rebuilding missions.

"Veterans Day. It's a very important day," Marchi said. "It is a day the nation pauses and shows its appreciation for its veterans, members in uniform - past, present and future."

 Email To Friend