Supporters and friends of Hanover County veterans gathered on Thursday for a poignant celebration of Veterans’ Day at the Hanover Veterans Memorial at the Wayside Park on U.S. 301. 

All branches of the military services were represented as residents remembered those who served and the many who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.

Brig. Gen. Karen LeDoux, commander of the 94th Division at Fort Lee, delivered a keynote address emphasizing the sacrifices made by soldiers in times of war and said she is in “awe of their service.”

“All over the nation, Americans are gathering today to remember and pay tribute to our veterans. Today is a chance to say thank you to those that have answered the call of duty,” she said.

LeDoux said the sacrifice continues today in various portions of the world, and recognized the families of those servicemen.

“It’s not only our veterans who have answered our nation’s call to duty, but also our veterans’ families,” she said. “These individuals may not carry a rifle on their shoulder, but they have carried the weight of worry. They carry that burden until their loved one returns home.”

LeDoux said military service members have served all over the world in some of the most challenging positions.

“Our veterans have crouched in the many trenches of Europe, confronted the enemy on the rocky crests of the Italian Alps and struggled up the sandy beaches of Normandy.

They’ve frozen through the bitter winters in the mountains of Korea, Bosnia and Kosovo and steamed in the jungles of Vietnam, Panama and the Philippines,” LeDoux said.

The audience was filled with veterans from all the military branches and representing numerous struggles of the past. They all had a story to tell.

Joe Nuckols was in the middle of Pearl Harbor when all hell broke loose on Dec. 7. William “Snapper” Harris of Mechanicsville was on the beaches at Normandy as Allied forces reclaimed a conquered Europe.

Harris showed his allegiance by donning the same uniform he wore more than 60 years ago.

Jack Ward, co-founder of the Hanover Veterans Committee, led the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance.

VFW Post 9808 provided the military honors for those who served and those who never returned, including a solemn wreath laying and the playing of Taps.

John Hubbard, a paratrooper with the 101st Airborne on D-Day, and Buddy Kelly joined LeDoux in laying a memorial wreath at the base of the memorial, which opened in 2007.

Dr. Gary Stewart of the Beaverdam Baptist Church opened the service with an invocation, and church member Amy Stewart delivered a moving rendition of the Star Spangled Banner.

Brig. Gen. William Jones served as the master of ceremonies for the tribute.

LeDoux reminded the group that the mission continues, and many are still answering a call of duty that is as old as the nation itself.

“While the mission and location of the theatre of operations may have changed from generation to generation, throughout the world, our veterans are the ones who have answered their nation’s call.”