Aurora Veterans Day parade to honor all who served
The City of Aurora, with support from the Aurora Veterans Advisory Council, will host the annual Veterans Day Parade beginning at 10:15 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 11.
During the ceremony, veterans Mayor Richard C. Irvin, state Rep. Linda Chapa LaVia, state Rep. Stephanie Kifowit and other guests will pay tribute to fellow veterans. They will be joined by Captain Anna Gonzales, the acting Regional Health Administrator for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Region 5.
"We are extremely grateful to our veterans and their families," said Mayor Richard C. Irvin, a United States Army veteran. "The parade is a special time to reflect and to say thank you to those who sacrificed so much for the liberties we have as Americans."
In commemoration of the end of World War 1 and the signing of the armistice on the 11th day of the 11th month at the 11th hour, the traditional military rifle salute will commence at 11 a.m. In tribute to the centennial of this historic Armistice of Nov. 11, 1918, the city will join the national Bells of Peace initiative and toll a bell during the same time.
The parade will step off from the corner of Broadway and Benton Street, travel north on Broadway, then west on Downer Place to the Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall, 23 E. Downer, where the ceremony will take place.
The keynote speaker will be Lt. Colonel Erik Pettyjohn, the Senior Aerospace Science Instructor for the Air Force JROTC Unit at West Aurora High School, the two-time national champions.
Pettyjohn is a 3rd generation fighter pilot and retired U.S. Air Force officer. He retired in June 2011 after 20 years on active duty. Pettyjohn spent 10 years as a fighter and instructor pilot. He flew F-16 fighter aircraft over Iraq in support of Operations Northern Watch and Southern Watch. Lt. Col Pettyjohn also spent 10 years of his Air Force career as a project manager and engineer. His final assignment was as the 640th Electronic Systems Squadron Commander, with over 100 personnel under his command and an annual budget of over $120 million.
Pettyjohn graduated from the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana with a Bachelor of Science degree in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering. He also holds an MBA from Aurora University, a Master's Degree in Systems Management from the University of Southern California and a Masters Degrees from the Air Command and Staff College.
Among his decorations, Pettyjohn has been awarded the Meritorious Service Medal, two Air Medals, and in 1997 he was awarded the Billy Joe Dryden Semper Viper Award - an award given for the top feat of airmanship in the F-16 out of the 19 Air Forces worldwide that fly the F-16 fighter aircraft.
Immediately after the ceremony, the G.A.R. Memorial Hall will be open for tours. From 9 a.m. to noon, the Aurora Historical Society will provide free coffee and doughnuts to spectators at the Art and History Center, 20 E. Downer Place. Visit www.aurora-il.org.