Many Attend Most Bellingham’s Recent Veterans Day Celebration
Speakers at the Veterans Day Ceremony at the Bellingham Library included (from left) Lt. Col. Philipp Riguat, U.S. Marine Corps; Jim Hastings, Chairman of the Bellingham Memorial and Veterans Day Committee; Kevin Calnan, Commander of VFW Post 7272 in Bellingham; and Jay Gatto, U.S. Marine Corps.
By David Dunbar
“Veterans Day is to thank and pray for vets because they are the reason you are free, and they are the reason we have hope.” Words spoken to about 120 folks gathered at the Bellingham Library in celebration of Veterans Day 2024.
“Joining the military takes time, dedication, focus and passion. Vets have to be strong mentally and physically, they are very selfless to be potentially killed just for other people’s freedom.” Logan King was reading from his essay that was voted best of 77 entries at Bellingham Memorial Middle School.
The Keynote Speaker was Lt. Col. Philipp Rigaut of the U.S. Marine Corps. “Thank you for your service,” he said to the veterans. “The qualities of those who serve are courage, resilience, sacrifice, and service.” He noted that Memorial Day was set aside to honor those who died in service to their country and that Veterans Day was to honor those who are alive.
Local VFW Post Commander Kevin Calnan remembered that he followed his father into service in the Army. He smiled and recalled that he “learned when to salute and how” from his dad. “When people say, “Thank you for your service, I respond with it’s a privilege and an honor.”
Jay Gato, a Marine Corps veteran, talked about his history in the service and ended with, “Veterans are the backbone of America.”
State Representative Mike Soter said, “I want to salute Bellingham for the support it gives to its veterans.” But, he added, “There is so much more that must be done for vets. Particularly Vietnam vets. They should be honored, not ignored. All vets protect our democracy and freedom.”
This current annual celebration at the library was one of the largest attended. And it was filmed by Cable 8, ABMI, which you can review by going to its website, https://abmi8.org.
