A U.S. Army veteran salutes in tribute to fallen military men and women and those missing in action at a memorial outside the Grant County Courthouse at the conclusion of a Veterans Day ceremony Tuesday in downtown Ephrata. Photos by Randy Bracht and Casey DevineA color guard of Civil Air Patrol cadets led Tuesday’s Veterans Day procession.Phil Rivera, commander of Quincy-based VFW Post 24, handed out flags along the parade route.People gathered along the route to greet participants as they passed by.Veterans Bob Goeden and Don Deycous were followed by Civil Air Patrol cadets, some of whom carried memorial banners of fallen military personnel from Washington state.Flags representing the various U.S. military branches were displayed on this motorcycle.Gaye Scheib was among local residents who turned out for the Veterans Day event.American Legion Honor Guard members Ken Koplin (left), Larry McCarty, buglar T. Eric Vernon and others paused for a gun salute and the playing of “Taps” at a memorial outside the Ephrata Recreation Center. The federal holiday was initially enacted as Armistice Day signifying the end of World War I on Nov. 11, 1918, then was renamed Veterans Day in 1954 in recognition of the service and sacrifices of all U.S. Armed Forces through the years.Two other Honor Guard members, Jeff Krausse (left) and Ray Brablec, chat as the procession traveled along Basin Street.Members of the Ephrata High School color guard presented the U.S. and Washington state flags during an assembly Monday to honor local military veterans.A group of veterans and family members stand for the Pledge of Allegiance during Monday's assembly presented by the EHS FFA local chapter. Former Marine Lt. Col. Greg Hanberg (center), a now-retired longtime history teacher at the Ephrata Middle School, was guest speaker. He urged students to reflect on “the gift of our country, and the gift of veterans,” and to consider how everyone can honor the sacrifices made by those who serve. Columbia Ridge music director Alicia Keegan, accompanied on guitar by Grant Elementary's Marshall Bilodeau, leads Columbia Ridge and Grant Elementary singers in a rendition of “America the Beautiful.”
