Sickness leads to Van Buren Veterans Day parade

story by Marla Cantrell
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There might not be a Veterans Day parade in downtown Van Buren if Les Thomas, Jr.’s dad hadn’t gotten sick eight years ago.

But he did get sick, was sent to the hospital, and became so depressed over the ordeal that Thomas looked for something to make dad feel better.

“I went down to the gift shop to try to find him something to cheer him up and I found a Chicken Soup for the Veteran’s Soul book,” Thomas said. “I was reading through it and there was a quote in there by Will Rogers that said, ‘We can’t all be heroes, because someone has to sit on the curb and clap as they go by.’”

The book helped his dad, and it did something for Thomas, as well. He began thinking about his father’s service as a private in the Philippine Islands during World War II. That’s when the idea of starting the parade first surfaced. Thomas realized the time to show his gratitude was quickly running out.

“We need to tell them now, while we have them with us, how much we appreciate them, because I have some of my uncles already passed away and I didn’t get a chance to tell them,” Thomas said.

The number of World War II vets is dropping each day. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, 900 World War II veterans die per day. As of Sept. 30, 2008, only 2.583 million World War II veterans were alive. More than 16 million Americans served in the war. The average age of a World War II veteran is now 85.

Thomas said the first parade was so bad that a few attendees came up to him and said, “You call that a parade?” But it’s grown each year and now the Main Street is lined with spirit groups, the Old Fort Dandies, bands, ROTC organizations, and horses — lots and lots of horses.

The parade starts at 6:30 p.m., Wednesday (Nov. 11) in downtown Van Buren.

This year one of the nursing homes will bring all their veterans downtown to ride on the float. Another father who served in World War II will be in the parade, along with his son who served in Vietnam and his grandson who was deployed to Iraq. The Vietnam veterans show up together to march down Main Street amidst a flurry of military and American flags.

He said in recent years he’s seen young mothers holding babies up to see the parade. They tell him, “Yeah, my husband’s done two tours already.” Men whose wives are serving stand in the crowd as well.

Some have not yet left the country. Thomas said last week’s shootings at Fort Hood, where 13 soldiers were killed by an Army psychiatrist, proves our soldiers are in danger, even before they board planes headed to war zones.

“You’ve got to honor those guys too,” Thomas said. “I mean they’re not actually over there, they’re not in harm’s way but apparently they are. They’re on their way, and they’re having to deal with it on their own soil and it’s sickening.”

While the soldiers’ service is serious business, the parade is a celebration. Thomas, whose brother John comes in from Talihina to help, is happy to see the veterans who come out in force each year.

His father Leslie Thomas, Sr., will be there. He hasn’t missed a parade in eight years.

“It’s all for my dad,” Thomas said. “He’s the one who made me realize what a veteran is.  He’s 83-years-old. He is one of the greatest generation.”