SALUTE honors current, former warriors

Area residents who have served during America's previous wars, and those who are serving overseas now, received their due recognition Saturday during a variety of SALUTE events.

The day began at 11 a.m. with a parade down South Herritage Street. A group of veterans clad in all manner of uniforms - some from the Civil War era - led the procession on foot, followed by motorcycle riders, local high school marching bands, Girl Scout, Boy Scout and Cub Scout units, vintage cars and trucks and vehicles decked out with banners advertising local businesses.

Less-mobile veterans rode in a procession of golf carts, ATVs, even a World War II-era Jeep.

The parade ended in Neuseway Park, where the weekend's opening ceremonies were held. John Moore, a retired first sergeant in the N.C. National Guard and the parade's grand marshal, was the keynote speaker.

"Freedom is not free, and don't for one moment think it is," he told the crowd. "And every generation has to pay that price."

Moore, a Greene County native who currently resides in Farmville and co-hosts "Carolina Outdoor Journal" on UNC-TV, and hosts the "Saturday Night Sock Hop" on WNCT-FM, recognized the veterans in attendance, some of whom have served in three wars, and the current members of today's "all-volunteer" military.

"They all have one thing in common," he said of today's service members. "They all believe this country is worth fighting for and serving."

Moore spent 28 years in the National Guard. He served during Operation Desert Storm with the Guard's 691st Maintenance Company and has a brick with his name inscribed on it in the park's Walk of Honor.

"We are not going to mourn the veterans," he said. "We are going to celebrate what they have given us."

The opening ceremony also included a performance from the Life Warriors, the River of Life Christian Center's step team.

Something's stewing

For the parade spectators and participants, the semi-annual Stew Fest took place just a short distance away from the ceremonies in front of the CSS Neuse II replica.

The Stew Fest has been held over the last five years to raise money for the CSS Neuse Foundation, the nonprofit group responsible for building the life-sized replica of the Confederate ironclad gunboat.

The Neuse Foundation and the Lenoir County Fair Association put the Stew Fest together, with assistance from the SALUTE committee.

The festival featured delicacies such as chili, Canada goose stew, fish stew and deer stew, said David Mooring, chairman of the Fair Association's Stew Fest Committee.

"We would love to have more teams next year, but it went well today," Mooring said. "We had good people in there; those people that support veterans are good people, good old Americans."

Old comrades reunite

A small group of veterans broke away from the main group Saturday afternoon to celebrate their shared experiences in the U.S. Army's 1st Cavalry Division.

SALUTE co-organizer Eric Cantu of Kinston, who served with the First Cavalry in Vietnam, hosted the reunion in the Community Council for the Arts building.

He said he put the reunion together to give members of the division, which was formed in the 1920s, the opportunity to meet each other, and honor eight of his helicopter crewmates who died when their aircraft crashed in Vietnam.

"It may be my last opportunity to honor those who died," Cantu said.

The First Cavalry Division Association has about 25,000 members around the nation, and at least 250 members in its state chapter, known as the Tarheel Chapter, said Allen Norris, the chapter's president. Norris also attended Saturday's reunion.

"If you served with or in the First Cavalry in any capacity you can be a member," he said.

The weekend continues

Saturday's SALUTE events included motorcycle rallies, a reception for Gen. Bryan Whitfield at Harmony Hall and a Veterans Tribute Show at the Grainger-Hill Performing Arts Center.

SALUTE will wrap up today with a memorial service at American Legion Post 43, followed by a reception.

David Anderson can be reached at (252) 559-1077 or danderson@freedomenc.com.