Minnesota Veterans Day: 8 names added to memorial in Richfield

RICHFIELD, Minn. (FOX 9) - Veterans Day ceremonies across Minnesota mixed big moments with personal tributes.

8 more names added in Richfield

Several people gathered to honor veterans at the Honoring All Veterans Memorial. Organizers said this year’s ceremony felt extra special because it also marked 250 years as a nation.

Timeline:

Cannon fire and Taps were part of the ceremony as people honored all veterans, including the eight whose names are now on the memorial stone. Organizers read each of those names during the ceremony.

Why you should care:

The name of any veteran, living or dead, may be added to the memorial in Richfield upon request, organizers said. The only requirement is that the service member must have been honorably discharged.

A special focus on the national anthem

Wednesday's ceremony also did something different by putting a focus on The Star-Spangled Banner. A flag that had flown at Fort McHenry in Maryland was part of that moment.

What they're saying:

"President Woodrow Wilson adopted it and said, 'This will be our national anthem,'" a speaker at the ceremony said.

"We decided to really honor The Star-Spangled Banner," said Lesley Farnham, president of the Honoring All Veterans Memorial. "One of our board members had been out to Fort McHenry and brought back one of the flags that had flown there."

Duluth hosted the state's main service

The state's official Veterans Day service happened in Duluth. Outgoing Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., spoke to the crowd there.

"We all know in this room that Minnesota has a long and proud history of service to this country," she said. "We have served out of proportion to our relatively small population."

The Source: FOX 9's Mike Manzoni reported from Richfield, and this story also uses remarks from Lesley Farnham and Sen. Tina Smith.