LINCOLNTON––Veterans Day this year falls on this coming Monday.

Every Nov. 11, countless veterans’ groups throughout the English-speaking world gather to remember when the guns of the Great War fell silent at 11 a.m., Nov. 11, 1918. For long years, in commemoration of this armistice, the day was known as Armistice Day. Today, of course, it is Veterans Day. In America, innumerable people will come together on this day to remember World War I and II, the Korean and Vietnam wars and the more recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

And in downtown Lincolnton, the annual Veterans Day parade and related ceremonies will kick off at 11 a.m., according to event organizers. The line-up for the parade will start at East Water and Flint streets. Everyone is welcome to participate and march. And on the eastern side of the Court Square, a short ceremony will follow the parade.

The “Hometown Heroes” banners, displaying the faces of local veterans from all branches of the military over the past 80 years, will be seen throughout downtown Lincolnton. It’s a way of honoring local veterans and the Veterans Day holiday.

And flying over the Veterans Day event in Lincolnton will be the Spirit of Freedom, a C-54 airplane flown during the Berlin Airlift, 1948-49. It now serves as a travelling museum. This event is an opportunity for the community to contribute to a worthy relief cause, whilst also learning about a significant chapter in global history. Residents are invited to visit the Spirit on Nov. 11, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., and again Nov. 12, 9 a.m.-noon, at the Lincoln County Airport at 714 Jack Dellinger Road in Iron Station. READ MORE HERE ABOUT THE SPIRIT OF FREEDOM

The Veterans Day parade and related events are sponsored by American Legion Post. No. 30 in Lincolnton. 

To learn more, call (704) 524-7816, or send your e-mail queries to semperfi8691@aol.com.