The Canby Veterans Day Memorial Service will be held at 11:30 a.m. Monday, Nov. 11, at the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Memorial on Highway 99E in Canby (yes, it’s the one with the helicopter).
The event will include remarks from honored veterans and dignitaries, a color guard and an F-15 flyover, which required coordination between local organizers, the Oregon Military Department, the Oregon Air National Guard and the Federal Aviation Administration. We’re told that even the Pentagon had to sign off on this.
The Canby Veterans Day event is in its second year, and local Army veteran Greg Perez has been one of the main organizers both years.
He said he started it because he didn’t want to have to leave his community to celebrate Veterans Day.
“I felt left out,” he explained. “I honestly had one of those bad days, where I felt left out and just felt like, we need to have something. So I kicked it around and talked to some other people, and we made it happen.”
The memorial service is hosted by the Canby American Legion Post No. 122, who are also providing coffee and doughnuts prior to the event and lunch afterward — free of charge. It’s open to all, and children and families are encouraged to join as well.
Limited seating will be available for veterans and those who need it. For questions, contact Perez at gnpretire@yahoo.com.