Chattanooga, Hamilton County and the Chattanooga Area Veterans Council (CAVC) will continue the long-standing tradition of honoring military personnel and mark the 63rd annual Armed Forces Day observance on Friday, May 4, downtown.
The parade procession will begin at Market St. and MLK at 10:30 a.m. and will march north to Aquarium Way. That evening, the Air National Guard Band of the Smoky Mountains Rock Band will perform a live concert at 6:30 p.m. in the Tennessee Aquarium plaza. The concert will be open to the public.
Each year, the parade honors a different branch of service, and a high-ranking member of that service is invited to serve as Grand Marshal. The Air Force is the honored branch of service this year, and Brig. Gen. Richard W. Scobee, deputy director of operations, Headquarters North American Aerospace Defense Command, will act as parade grand marshal and guest speaker at the luncheon following the parade.
Air National Guard Band of the Smoky Mountains will lead the parade and its 50+ entries, which will include color guards, JROTC units and bands from area schools, units from military services, area veterans groups, patriotic organizations and local businesses. Honored guests will include government officials, Gold Star wives and mothers and representatives from all five military branches.
The Armed Forces Day celebration has continued in Chattanooga without interruption since President Harry Truman set that day aside August 31, 1949. Although Armed Forces Day is May 19, Chattanooga marks the occasion earlier to allow school units to participate.
Chattanooga, which considers itself one of the most patriotic cities in the country, is the only larger city in Tennessee that holds the annual parade and the only one in America of its size to continue the observance.
Hamilton County Commissioner Jim Fields is parade civilian chairman, and Maj. Marty Malone, detachment commander, 241 Engineering Installation Squadron, Tennessee Air National Guard, is this year’s military project officer.
For more information, please visit www.facebook.com/chattafparade.