Plans underway for annual Vet's Day celebration

Tigert Memorial United Methodist Church has announced tentative plans for the annual Veteran’s Day celebration.

The church, along with Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2649 and American Legion Post 406, have hosted the event for the past 12 years.

The observance will be a the traditional time honored time of 11-11-11 at Candee Park in Cairo.

A fly over by two United States Air Force jets will be at the start of the day. The lead jet pilot is a Cairo native, Capt. Curt Taylor. Taylor will lead the two-jet formation as they fly over Cairo and then land at the airport in Cape Girardeau, Mo.

Memorial wreaths will be put in place by the VFW Post 2649 Ladies Auxiliary. The wreath laying will be followed by Malvin Kepley who will play the bagpipes in a traditional kilt.

Soloist for the national anthem will be Tigert member Kent Thomas and soloist Anita Bugg will sing "God Bless America" and "It’s Always Been the Soldier."

Cairo native Jack Buie will be the keynote speaker. Jack served in the United States Army as a member of the Presidentail Honor Guard where he walked the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Jack was the Firing Party Commander and gave orders on national television for the 21 gun salute at the funerals of Presidents Harry S Truman and Lyndon B. Johnson. Jack was then stationed to do White House Ceremonial duty.

The color guard for the day will be veterans who were recently deployed to Iraq, and have come back to the United States safely, and continue to be in service at the Cairo National Guard Armory.