When taps ended, Skip Barnes, of Pittsfield, raised his head, and Al Salvatore, of Dalton, patted him on the back. The two men, both Vietnam veterans, were among the roughly 1,000 people who attended the city's Veterans Day ceremony on Wednesday morning.
"I can't get over it," Barnes said a few minutes later, his face still flush with emotion. He said listening to taps brings memories of the war be fought in during the mid-1960s flooding back.
"It's all my buddies," Barnes said. "Vietnam. It's hard to forget."
"The reason I come here every year is for the poor guys who never came back," he said.
Veterans Day, originally known as Armistice Day, officially marks the end of World War I on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918. Now
Pittsfield celebrated Veterans Day in the traditional manner Wednesday, with a parade from City Hall down South Street to the city's Veterans Memorial, a practice that first took place in 1918. A large crowd then gathered in front of the memorial for the Veterans Day ceremony, which featured prayers, songs, and speeches, the laying of ceremonial wreathes from eight veterans groups, and a flyover by two F-15s from Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield.
"As a proud and free American, I stand before you this morning with a deep sense of gratitude to all veterans for the service to their country," said guest speaker Sherman Baldwin, who hosts the "Talk Berkshires" program on WBRK-AM (1340) in Pittsfield.
"What do I owe you?" Baldwin asked rhetorically. "The answer is easy. Everything."
He then left the podium to shake the hands of an honor guard of veterans who were standing behind the dignitaries seating area.
While not a veteran, Baldwin spoke of the military experiences of his father, who served in the Korean War, his uncles, both World War II aviators, and his son, who recently re-enlisted in the Coast Guard, and may be deployed to police the waters around Somalia. He also recalled spending Christmas holidays at Fort Devens as a youngster.
"I would not be standing before you today, if it weren't for your love of country and your willingness to sacrifice it all for all of us," Baldwin said. "For that, I am eternally grateful."
Speaking in place of Mayor James M. Ruberto, City Council President Gerald M. Lee thanked all veterans for their service, "including those who gave the ultimate sacrifice." Lee also thanked the families of veterans "for sending them off to war in which they would never return."
Donald T. Kasuba, of Pittsfield, received the 2009 Veteran of the Year Award from Pittsfield's Director of Veterans' Services, Rosanne M. Frieri. Senior Master Sgt. Joe Delaney, of the 104th Fighter Wing stationed at Barnes Air National Guard Base, received a special award that Frieri said is given to the best honor guard.
In Adams, members of American Legion Post 160 and a few dozen met at war memorial at Town Hall, where Norman Schutz, a former Marine, National Guardsman and police chief, paid tribute to the nation's veterans.
Schutz told the crowd that as he thought about Veterans Day, he first thought of his fellow veterans from the American Legion and all that they have done and continue to do for the country.
"I then thought of two special veterans, my son and my daughter," he said. "My son, 1st Lt. Jacob Schutz is a platoon leader in the Massachusetts Army National Guard. My daughter, 2nd Lt. Caitlin Schutz, is a nurse in the United States Air Force. It is with thoughts of them and all veterans that I speak."
Schutz expressed his gratitude and reverence for all the country's fighting men and women.
"Throughout our nation's history, American soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen have bravely answered the call," Schutz said. "The call to defend our freedoms, the call to aid our friends and allies and the call to turn back all aggressors."
Schutz said that America can never repay the debt of gratitude it owes to its 650,000 dead and 1.4 million wounded veterans. However, he added, the country can and should thank the 25 million veterans alive today.
In North Adams, American Legion Post 125 Commander Dennis St. Pierre reminded the crowd gathered at the Veterans Memorial of the reason why so many have a day off from work or school.
"Today is a day to celebrate," he said. "Today is a present. It's an extremely expensive present -- one that you can't see, one that you can't touch, one that you can't smell. It's our freedom, our liberty and our way of life.
"It's a day to remember all of the veterans who have served in war and in peace. There are many different generations of veterans -- those who are on the wall and those who have served in places like Panama and the Persian Gulf and those who are still serving in Iraq and Afghanistan."
In Williamstown and several other Berkshire communities also held Veterans Day remembrances.
New England Newspapers staff writers Ryan Hutton and Jennifer Huberdeau contributed to this report.
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