There will be plenty of opportunities to thank area veterans for their service in a number of ceremonies planned around the region in recognition of Veterans Day.
Schools within the county as well as the Poplar Bluff Veterans Council and Poplar Bluff Municipal Library will be hosting events over the next several days.
The public is also invited to attend the annual Poplar Bluff Veterans Council's Veterans Day Ceremony at 11 a.m. Sunday at the Veterans' Wall in front of the Black River Coliseum. The featured speaker at this year's ceremony will be United States Army and WWII veteran Corporal Clem Deken.
Refreshments will be provided by Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center.
"This year marks the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I," said event planner and Veterans Council Member Kaye Sparkman. "It is an especially important time to honor and remember all who have served."
The Poplar Bluff Veterans Council is made up of representatives from area Veterans Service Organizations, such as the VFW, American Legion, AmVets and Vietnam Veterans of America, as well as the John J. Pershing VA Medical Center.
The Poplar Bluff Municipal Library invites the public to commemorate WWI at 2 p.m. Sunday.
The library will host Dr. Candace Malson of John J. Pershing Veterans Administration Hospital and Lonnie Thiele to the commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the very day WWI ended.
Poplar Bluff High School U.S. Army Jr. ROTC will present the colors to open the discussion.
A question and answer session to end the hour-long commemoration will be held and refreshments will be provided by the Poplar Bluff Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
The speakers' topics recreate a sense of the nation's past as people lived it.
Malson will address the role of the Bonus Army and veterans' benefits.
Thiele will remind citizens of how Missouri's fine mules and horses served to win the war.
Poplar Bluff Municipal Library Director Sue Crites Szostak will present on the contributions of women to the war effort.
The library is located at 318 North Main Street and is open from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays. The library also currently houses a WWI exhibit honoring local veterans, on display until Nov. 30.
Twin Rivers High School will be hosting a breakfast for all veterans at 7:30 a.m. Friday in the high school gym. Qulin Elementary will have a student-led assembly in recognition of all veterans at 9 a.m. Friday. Students will serve as the speakers, sing and play a video during the ceremony.
Poplar Bluff Middle School will host their annual Veterans Day program at 9 a.m. Friday in E.T. Peters Gym. In addition to a special musical tribute to all veterans, a timeline of U.S. wars and conflicts will be presented by students. Sixth grade student Clayton Jones will be joined by his grandfather, Charles Jones, during a WWII history lesson.
O'Neal Elementary School invites all veterans for a Veterans Day Assembly at 10 a.m. Monday in the school's gymnasium. The students will put on a performance honoring all veterans, including singing patriotic songs arranged by music teacher Dan Cox.
The Neelyville R-IV School District will be hosting a Veterans Day program at 9 a.m. Friday at the high school gym. The program will feature several readings from students as well as musical performances featuring Neelyville students and staff. Veterans in attendance will be recognized by the high school's Future Business Leaders of America Club.
Three Rivers College will present a Veterans Day Ceremony at 6 p.m. Friday at the Tinnin Fine Arts Center. The program will give a brief look into different military history and is open to the public.
Veterans Day is the anniversary of the signing of the armistice, which ended the World War I hostilities between the Allied nations and Germany in 1918.