WORCESTER—Armed with breakfast, flags and smiles, families packed 69 Grove St. in Worcester on Tuesday morning to celebrate Veterans Day with the annual Veterans Inc. Pancake Breakfast and Parade.
“We welcome more than 450 veterans, families and community members for a great morning of pancakes and breakfast and camaraderie as we celebrate Veterans Day and give thanks to those who have served,” said Public Affairs Manager Raymond Carville.
Veterans Inc. has been holding this free pancake breakfast for about 20 years. tarting with a few dozen veterans, it has mushroomed to more than 450 attendees today. The event consists of a buffet-style breakfast, resource tables for veterans to address any issues they are experiencing, a kids area with a bouncy house, and hundreds of community members gathering to honor veterans.
Alan Swartz, a veteran who attends every year, shared his experience with the event. “The Veterans Inc. organization in Worcester is amazing,” he said. “They do so much, give so much. I believe that it’s finally time that the veterans, especially those of Vietnam, get their due.”
The event is about a lot more than a free breakfast. It’s about bringing people together and acknowledging a special segment of the population., “[It’s about] sharing stories and traditions,” said Carville, “like when an older veteran from Korea or Vietnam can sit at the breakfast table and share their stories with a younger generation.” Carville added that the community support drives people back every year and keeps the event happening.
As the pancake breakfast came to an end at 11 a.m., the parade began outside the historic Armory, which is also Veterans Inc’s headquarters, and culminated at City Hall. A Korean War memorial wreath-laying ceremony followed at 52 Foster St. with the parade winding to the Massachusetts Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Green Hill Park, where more wreaths were laid ceremoniously.
Several elected officials joined Veterans Inc. including Mayor Joseph Petty, Congressmen Jim McGovern and Seth Moulton, City Manager Eric Batista, Sheriff Lew Evangelidis, Worcester Police Chief Paul Saucier and several other state representatives, senators and city councilors. “We’ll have volunteers from all over our community, roughly 100, helping make this a great day for veterans and their families,” Carville said.
The event is made possible by the “generous financial and volunteer support” of Freedom Energy Logistics, Blackstone Productions Inc., Abbvie, Santander and Bristol Myers Squibb.
Jenna Foley is a communication and multimedia journalism student at Worcester State University, focusing on telling impactful stories through different forms of media. She can be reached at jfoley17@worcester.edu
