Johnson County veterans, their families and supporters will gather Saturday at the Korean War Veterans Memorial at 119th Street and Lowell in Overland Park to mark Veterans Day 2017.
The program, which will begin at 11 a.m., will honor veterans of all American conflicts, including World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, Operation Desert Storm and the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Among the guests at this year’s observance will be 32 veterans of the Korean War, who will receive Ambassador for Peace Medals issued by South Korea. Therese Park, an Overland Park resident who grew up on the Korean peninsula during the conflict, said the annual event is an important opportunity to remember an often-forgotten conflict.
“As a South Korean, who lived through the war as a child and witnessed the veterans’ unfaltering team spirit in constructing their Memorial here in Overland Park six decades later, I humbly say, ‘God Bless all Korean War Veterans!'” Park said.
The observance will include a keynote speech by Sgt. Roger Martinez from the Kansas Army National Guard as well as remarks by Lt. Colonel Kyunghwan Jung, South Korean Army Liaison officer to the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center, and County Commission Chair Ed Eilert.
You can find more information on the Veterans Day event on the county’s website here.