NEWBURYPORT — A crowd of roughly 75 residents, city officials and students gathered in front of City Hall on Monday morning to recognize those who serve their country during the annual Veterans Day parade and ceremony.
Veteran Services Director Kevin Hunt told them it’s imperative Americans don’t forget history.
“Empires start to dissolve and crumble when they don’t respect their veterans. That was true in Rome. It was true in a couple of other empires, and I hope it’s not true in America,” he said.
The day began with the first of a two-leg parade starting on Pond Street. From there, Mayor Sean Reardon was joined by members of the City Council, honor guards from the Police and Fire departments, the Newburyport High School marching band, as well as a number of local veterans.
They marched down Green Street to City Hall, where the Veterans Day ceremony was held on the front steps.
Once finished, most of the group gathered once again and marched down Green Street to Water Street. They headed up State Street, then over to Pond Street and on to the Old Hill Cemetery to lay a memorial wreath and offer a benediction.
Reardon hosted the ceremony at City Hall. He read the names of all the veterans who had passed away in the six months since Memorial Day as a bell rang out in their honor.
The mayor also made sure to thank local first responders.
“Over half of our Police Department are veterans, here in Newburyport,” Reardon said. “I also know the Fire Department has about seven veterans on their staff. Thank you for all you do to us on a day-to-day basis and thank you for your service.”
Hunt pointed out the city’s Police and Fire services have a tradition very similar to the military.
“At one point, every veteran raised his right hand and agreed that he will give his life for his country,” he said. “Police and Fire raise their right hands and make a similar oath.”
Firefighters, according to Hunt, pledge their lives to run into a burning building while other people are running away. Similarly, police officers are bound to rush into an active shooter situation while everyone else is ducking and running for cover.
Hunt also made sure to point U.S. Army veteran Jack Bradshaw out to the crowd. Bradshaw was assistant to late Mayor Byron Mathews during urban renewal (when the city took advantage of federal funding to reconstruct the downtown into the tourist-friendly environment it is today) in the late 1960s to the late 1970s.
Hunt said Bradshaw and the other people he worked with “saved Newburyport.”
“We may not be gathered here today or even have lived here, had this man not woven his magic back in the 1960s,” he said.
A group of people in the 1960s, according to Hunt, wanted to tear the city’s downtown brick buildings down in favor of a two-story strip mall in the State Street area.
“At the time, they thought it was a good idea,” he said. “Right now we know it was a terrible idea.”
Hunt added Bradshaw fought very hard to make sure that didn’t happen.
Bradshaw said Hunt’s accolades were wonderful.
“God bless America,” he said.
Wars always take a toll on people, according to Hunt, who ended his address in the traditional fashion.
“No veteran ever started a war. But they have ended every one of them,” he said.
The Newburyport High School varsity football team. Local Brownie Girl Scouts, Girl Scouts Cadettes, and Cub Scouts led the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance.
At-Large City Councilors Ed Cameron, Heather Shand and Afroz Khan stood with Reardon during the ceremony, along with Ward 3 Councilor Heath Granas, Ward 4 Councilor Ben Harman and Ward 5 Councilor Jim McCauley.
Ward 1 City Councilor Sharif Zeid also marched in the first half of the parade, along with his fellow councilors.
Staff writer Jim Sullivan covers Newburyport for The Daily News. He can be reached via email at jsullivan@newburyportnews.com or by phone at 978-961-3145. Follow him on Twitter @ndnsully.