The Clovis Veterans Memorial District observed this year’s Veterans Day with their annual Veterans Day celebration held in their block of Old Town Clovis.
Events included a car show, documentaries played in their hall, a Patriotic Concert held in their Liberty Ballroom, along with photos of Veterans scattered throughout the area. A specific part of The District was reserved solely for photos of Veterans from the Clovis area.
This of course kicked off with the District‘s annual pancake breakfast, discussed by CEO Lorenzo Rios. This breakfast was held specifically for all Veterans.
“The Veterans of Foreign Wars provided breakfast that was free to all Veterans, and all they asked for was a donation from the rest of the public…that’s one of their big fundraisers.”
Towards the front entrance of the Memorial District’s event center, winners of the Veterans Day Student Contest were displayed for all those who entered to view. This student contest had entrants from Clovis Unified School District’s Kindergarten classes all the way to 6th grade. The contest was open to three sections, elementary, middle and intermediate schools, and high schools. A link to winners of the contest can be found at cvmdistrict.ca.gov.
After the playing of patriotic selections performed by the Clovis Community Band and performances from the local community choir ”Kids Can Sing”, a non-profit group that makes music readily available to all children, attendees were invited out to view the car show held along Veterans Parkway.
Cars parked along the street were displayed, some with notes of direct relations to Veterans, and crowds of spectators walked the 500 foot street length down to the Veterans Community Heritage Center.
The Community Heritage Center, opened about a year ago, is an interesting look into the history of Clovis moving from the introduction of Clovis as a city into the time of World War I. Displays of the flume that ran from Shaver Lake into the middle of the City were portrayed as well as interactive portraits of Clovis pioneers including Clovis Cole, Marcus Pollasky, and C.B. Shaver. This of course then transported into the history of World War I and its impacts on the Clovis community in this museum like setting.
One of the first items on display crediting the World War I section of the museum was an Army Nurse’s uniform, directly related to the “Women in the Military” section of the Veterans Day festivities. Other exhibits were scattered throughout The District highlighting women’s achievements throughout the history of the American military. You can learn more about the Veterans Memorial District’s honoring of Women in the Military on their website at “Clovis Veterans Memorial District.”