Speaker: Vets set aside their civilian pursuits to serve our nation's cause

YOUNGSTOWN

Active military personnel and veterans are “the true heroes” of American democracy, a local veterans organization leader told more than 100 people at the annual Veterans Day observance in the Mahoning County Courthouse.

“We come together to recognize and commemorate the veterans of Mahoning County for their service to this great nation during war and in peace,” said Samuel Swoger II of Austintown, commander of the United Veterans Council of Greater Youngstown, an umbrella group of local veterans organizations.

“We remember how men and women from our country set aside their civilian pursuits to serve their nation’s cause, defending our freedom and preserving our precious American heritage,” he said Tuesday.

Commitments to serve “our country and its causes are the pinnacles of true citizenship,” he said.

“We continue our endeavors on behalf of world peace with profound gratitude to the men and women who served as part of the noble cause,” he told the audience of veterans, judges and county officials.

Read more about the ceremony in Wednesday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.