Veterans Day a big deal in Sun City Center
By LOIS KINDLE
LOIS KINDLE PHOTOS
Saluting the American flag, from left: VIP guests retired Air Force Lt. Col. Gordy Bassett, retired Army Lt. Col. Eddie Garcia, retired Navy Senior Chief Luther “Jay” Allen, American Legion Department of Florida 15th District commander; Department of Florida; retired Brig. Colin Howgill; and Navy veteran Janet Taylor, American Legion Post 246 commander.
Military holidays are especially meaningful to residents of Sun City Center. They or their family members have served in the U.S. Armed Forces and they’ve lived through many of the wars and conflicts in which our country has been involved.
So many say it’s not surprising there’s always a crowd at the community’s annual Veterans Day ceremony.
“It’s a very patriotic community,” said Nancy Alguire, president of the Military Family Support Trust. “We have so many veterans living here.”
Those veterans represent different war eras, said Janet Taylor, Navy veteran and commander of American Legion Post 246, noting there are current Sun City Center residents who fought in battles at Iwo Jima, Guam, Normandy (D -Day) and in the Battle of the Bulge during World War II. Residents also include Navy veteran Ed Socha, who was stationed at Pearl Harbor when it was attacked in 1941 and many who saw combat in the Korean, Vietnam and Gulf wars.
Area dignitaries applaud the Trinity Singers performance of the National Anthem. From left are Stacy White, Hillsborough County commissioner; Maj. Rob Bullara, HCSO Dist. IV commander; Jeff Merry, HCSO Community Resource Deputy; Dana Dittmar, Sun City Area Chamber CEO; Nancy Alguire, president of the Military Family Support Trust; Pam Howgill; and Lori Germaine, Military Family Support Trust.
Hosted by the American Legion post and supported by Sun City Center’s other military organizations, (local chapters of the Military Officers Association of America, Military Order of the World Wars, Navy Seabees, Silver Osprey Squadron, Disabled American Veterans and the Leathernecks), this year’s ceremony took place Nov. 11 at Community Hall. As is always the case, few seats were vacant.
“On Veterans Day we honor all veterans and their families,” Taylor said. “We are Americans, and we helped preserve our freedom by serving in the military. Without that sacrifice, we wouldn’t have the wonderful, strong country we have.”
The tradition needs to continue, said retired Army Lt. Col. Paul Wheat, a Sun City Center retiree who’s been involved in the Veterans Day ceremony in one way or another since the late ’90s.
“It’s important for people to turn out and remember our veterans,” he said. “From what I’ve gathered from my grandchildren, the history books are now kind of skimpy on the details of what they and their families went through in service to our country.”
Future generations need to continue to serve, understand what Veterans Day means and keep its observance going, he said.
Ret. U.K. Royal Marines Brig. Colin Howgil, the speaker at this year’s Veterans Day event, addresses the audience Nov. 11 at the annual Veterans Day ceremony in Sun City Center.
Hillsborough County Commissioner Stacy White; Dana Dittmar, CEO of the Sun City Center Area Chamber of Commerce; Maj. Rob Bullara and Community Resource Deputy Jeff Merry, of the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office; military wife Pam Howgil; and Nancy Alguire and Lori Germaine, of the Military Family Support Trust, were among the dignitaries in attendance.
The ceremony included a procession led by Grand Marshal Augustine, an Army veteran who served in World War II; the East Bay High School Color Guard; an invocation; the Pledge of Allegiance; and closing benediction. Led by the Rev. James Feist, the Trinity Singers from Trinity Lutheran Church, sang the “Star Spangled Banner,” “God Bless America” and a medley of rousing patriotic numbers. Veterans of each military branch in attendance were asked to stand and be recognized.
Brig. Colin Howgil, a highly decorated 31-year veteran of the United Kingdom Royal Marines, was event speaker.
Following the opening procession, members of the East Bay High School JROTC Color Guard advance the American and state of Florida flags into Community Hall in Sun City Center during the community’s annual Veterans Day ceremony.
“I speak proudly, both as a U.S. citizen for almost 20 years and as a retired U.K. Royal Marines officer who has had the privilege to serve in many countries worldwide, including alongside U.S. servicemen, particularly U.S. Marines,” he said. “With that background and conscious of the fact that Nov. 11 is probably the most internationally recognized day of remembrance celebrating the end of hostilities in World War I at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, I thought it appropriate to start by reminding ourselves of some history and associated events around the world.”
While Howgil’s service record includes many impressive assignments, two of the most notable are his being sent to work in the United States as the joint warfare attaché and chief of staff at the British Embassy in Washington, D.C., in 1986, and his appointment as Royal Marines Aide-de-Camp to Queen Elizabeth II in 1988. He retired from the military the following year.
An American citizen since 1997, Howgil is presently a broker associate with Weichert Realtors — Yates & Associates and chairman of the Military Family Support Trust. He and Pam, his wife of 51 years, reside in Sun City Center.
The Trinity Baptist Church Trinity Singers perform a musical interlude at the 2016 Veterans Day ceremony in Sun City Center.