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10/18/2024 12:30 PMWESTBROOK
As a way of showing appreciation to veterans for their service, the town of Westbrook and Westbrook Public Schools are partnering to host a community Veterans Day celebration on the Town Green on Monday Nov. 11 at 11 a.m.
The celebration will last about an hour and feature speeches from town officials and veterans. Gil Simmons, the meteorologist from WTNH, and a former Marine will speak, as will members of the American Legion. Students from the Westbrook Middle School and Westbrook High School choruses will sing songs, and the school bands will play. A speaker will explain the significance of the poppies and will hand out poppies to all in attendance. Prior to the event, there will be a breakfast for the veterans at the high school from 8:30 to 10 a.m.
“Every student from the high school and middle school will be there, as well as 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders from Daisy Ingraham School. This event is open to any and all veterans who want to attend. You don’t have to be from Westbrook,” explained Chet Bialicki, one of the organizers of the event.
Bialicki said that this year, rather than have two different ceremonies at the schools and the green, the town and schools have partnered to host the one ceremony on the green.
“It ended up being a lot for the veterans to get them to two events in the same day. We thought that just doing the one would be easier. We have the breakfast before the event where the students will be serving and talking with the veterans, too,” Bialicki said.
To RSVP or for more information, interested parties can call 860-399-6214.
Bialicki said the town has reached out to local groups like the American Legion and the Elks Club to spread the word about the ceremony to any area veteran who is able to attend, as well as to other members of the public.
Veterans Day is traditionally held on Nov. 11 of every year to honor those who have served the country. The day was originally known as Armistice Day and marked the day the Allied Forces and Germany signed an armistice during World War I.
In 2023, organizers made a concerted effort to publicize the Veterans Day ceremony after years of dwindling attendance.
“It was the best-attended ceremony of recent years last year. We had a good turnout. This year, we got permission to close the roads around the green for an hour during the ceremony, so we hope we can have more people and also less noise and distractions from passing cars during the ceremony,” Bialicki said.
Bialicki, who is a member of the Westbrook Board of Selectman, as well as a teacher at the high school, said that in addition to honoring the veterans, the event is a good way to have Westbrook students learn about both Veterans Day and civic engagement.
“We want them there to understand the meaning of the day and hear the speeches and have it be a meaningful event about what the day really is about. We’re looking to have a relationship with veterans—to say thank you to them—and educate students, so they can have an appreciation of veterans their whole life,” Bialicki said.