Veterans Day Parade in O.B. Wednesday, Nov. 11. —Nicholas Vukota 
Coast Guard Machinery Technician Markas Varpiotas leading the Veterans Day Parade in O.B. —Nicholas Vukota 
Members of the Dukes County Sheriff’s Office at the Veterans Day Parade. —Nicholas Vukota 
Veterans during the “National Anthem” at the Veterans Day Parade. —Nicholas Vukota 
From left, Coast Guard members Markas Varpiotas and Adrian D’Acunto perform a ceremonial rifle volley. —Nicholas Vukota 
Veterans salute at the Veterans Day Parade in O.B. —Nicholas Vukota 
Tom Morrison, who served in the National Guard from 1964 to 1992, at the Veterans Day Parade. —Nicholas Vukota 
Veterans Day Parade in O.B. Wednesday, Nov. 11. —Nicholas Vukota 
From left, Edgartown Police Lt. Michael Snowden and Oak Bluffs Police Chief Police Jonathan Searle. —Nicholas Vukota 
Jo Ann Murphy at the Veterans Day Parade. —Nicholas Vukota 
John Schilling playing “Taps” at the Veterans Day Parade in O.B. —Nicholas Vukota 
George Pimentel, director of veterans services for Dukes County, speaks at the Veterans Day Parade. —Nicholas Vukota 
The Island’s Scouts at the Veterans Day Parade. —Nicholas Vukota
Martha’s Vineyard veterans marched down the streets of Oak Bluffs Wednesday as part of the annual Veterans Day Parade, accompanied by Island supporters, to honor the men and women who served in the U.S. Armed Forces.
This year, Veterans Day is flanked by the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, as well as 25 years since the 9/11 terrorist attacks that forever changed the country. Generations of Islanders have served in different branches of the military, and among those in procession at the Oak Bluffs parade, were veterans of the Korean War, Vietnam War, and Gulf War, alongside the U.S. Coast Guard, Dukes County Sheriff’s Office deputies, U.S. Navy members, Oak Bluffs fire and police officials, and the Island’s Scouts, all of whom proudly bore their organizations’ flags under a warm November sun.
Other displays of appreciation on the Island include free rides for veterans on Steamship Authority ferries and 400 flags displayed at Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School. A new discount program for veterans from the SSA also began Wednesday.
After the parade marched to Ocean Park, the ceremony began. The park holds a veterans memorial stone listing the names of 50 Oak Bluffs men who served in World War I; there are also 68 bricks around the stone with the names of loved ones who never made it home over the years.
George Pimentel, who served in the U.S. Army for almost seven years as a captain and airborne ranger and is now the director of veterans services for Dukes County, spoke about the importance of Veterans Day at the ceremony.
The ceremony also included the singing of the National Anthem by one of the Island’s favorite altos, Mary MacDonald, who has been performing anthems on Island for more than 10 years. It was followed by a rifle salute by Coast Guard personnel and “Taps” played by former Tisbury Fire Chief John Schilling. The group then marched back toward Oak Bluffs Harbor, and all ceremony and parade attendees were welcomed to a lunch at the Veterans of Foreign Wars post in O.B.
