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Portsmouth honors veterans with annual Memorial Day Parade

Posted at 12:15 PM, May 25, 2015
and last updated 2015-05-25 12:15:30-04

Portsmouth, Va. - It’s a tradition that's packed Portsmouth's High Street for 131 years, the annual Memorial Day Parade that honors all who have lost their lives fighting for our freedom.

“It's a mixed feeling. I'm happy for the parade, but I'm sad for the veterans that lost their lives in these wars,” says Joe Wright an army vet.

He was a paratrooper in the early 1950's. Today, he’s sitting on a platform amongst his other band of "brothers and sisters.”

“It's a lot of camaraderie in Portsmouth because this is the oldest Memorial Day parade in the country. We get to see people we haven't seen in a year, and all of us know each other. Once you've served in the service, everyone on that platform is your brother or your sister,” says Wright.

They were looking down onto High Street watching other veteran groups, ROTC units, and marching bands. It’s a tradition that Wright wouldn't miss.

“I try to be here each year that I'm still living because I think it's a great honor for the City of Portsmouth to honor veterans. I am a disabled veteran and I'm going to be here as long as I can get down here because I don't have too many years left,” says Wright.