FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — The 105th Central Valley Veterans Day Parade kicked-off in downtown Fresno late Monday morning.
The three-hour celebration began at Fresno City Hall and ended at Chukchansi Park.
Retired US Marine Corps service member Dan Payne has served as the Central Valley Veterans Day Parade announcer for over 20 years.
“Many times I’ve been referred to as the voice of the Veterans Day Parade,” said Payne.
ABC30 presented live coverage of the 105th Central Valley Veterans Day Parade on Monday.
The parade lasts about two hours, but it takes an entire year of planning to make it come together.
“To coin a phrase, it takes an army to successfully put on this parade,” said Payne.
The parade highlights all six military branches, and this year’s event honored the US Navy.
The parade’s grand marshal was a US Navy Captain representing Lemoore Naval Air Station.
The parade’s soundtrack will be provided by eight high school bands and Fresno State.
Event coordinators expected Monday’s parade to attract close to 20,000 spectators, including young people, local government leaders, and, of course Valley veterans.
“We have more veterans in Central California than anywhere else in the United States,” explained Payne.
Both Payne and retired US Army veteran Cruz Cuellar are part of that tradition.
“There’s different kinds of stories that every veteran has. World War II, Korea, Vietnam,” said Cuellar, who is the president of the Central Valley Veterans Parade.
In 1969, a 20-year-old Cuellar was drafted to Vietnam with the US Army.
“On my fifth day out there in the field, I got wounded,” recalled Cuellar.
Cuellar spent 40 days in the hospital recovering before he was released back into combat.
“I’ve had some flashbacks and some nightmares.”
He served two years in the U.S. Army and received the Purple Heart for his valor.
“Basically, I reflect on that and I think about my friends that didn’t make it back,” explained Cuellar.
Payne also recalls the moment he was motivated to enlist in the Marines.
“A Marine Corps commercial came on at 11 o’clock at night. I was sitting with my girlfriend who is now my wife and I said, “‘I’m going to join tomorrow,’” said Payne.
The next day, he did just that.
He would serve for 23 years, retiring from the U-S Marine Corps in 1996.
Now, his service is dedicated to Valley veterans and their families.
“I want family members of veterans to walk away saying, ‘Wow, my grandpa would have been very proud. My dad would have been very proud,” Payne said.
KMJ’s News Partner ABC30 livestreamed the parade in its entirety, and is a proud sponsor of the 105th Central Valley Veterans Day Parade.
Listen to the reports by KMJ’s Liz Kern.
