VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Despite the chilly temperatures Tuesday morning, people lined the Oceanfront from 16th Street to the Virginia Beach Convention Center to celebrate the annual Tidewater Veterans Day Parade.
Residents bundled up in coats and waved flags as marching bands, motorcycles, and even helicopters passed by along 19th Street.
“It’s cold!” said Navy veteran David Morz, laughing as he watched the parade with his family.
“This is my first time being here in four years because I’ve been deployed for the last three parades. I think it’s great and important to recognize all the people who came before us and gave their lives in service to this wonderful country.”
The event brought together families from across Hampton Roads to honor those who have served in the armed forces.
Among them was Avonlea Nettingham, whose son participated in the parade as a freshman in the Cox High School ROTC program.
“I’m a Nettingham, so we have family that were veterans as well,” she said. “They just named a school after my uncle in New Jersey — Tuskegee Airman Malcom Nettingham. That’s my great uncle.”
Nettingham said she plans to make attending the parade a family tradition.
“Now every year, because we’ve got an ROTC baby, we’ll be out here in the cold again next year,” she said.
For those who missed the parade, a replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, known as The Moving Wall, was on display at the Virginia Beach Convention Center through 8 p.m. Tuesday before traveling to its next stop in Boston.
