SEASIDE >> Many people came out on a very cold, wet and windswept Veterans Day to celebrate, honor and thank those who have served in the United States military at a ceremony Monday at the California Central Coast Veterans Cemetery in Seaside.

“Their commitment was not only to protect their homeland, but also to uphold the core ideals of our democracy. The belief that all people are created equal and have the right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness,” said Seaside Mayor Ian Oglesby. “This means living without fear of discrimination, choosing our own path, and sharing or striving for dreams that have made our nation stronger and one of the greatest nations on Earth.”

The event at the Veterans Cemetery on Parker Flats Road on the former Fort Ord was co-sponsored by Seaside American Legion Post 591, the California Department of Veterans Affairs, the Central Coast Veterans Cemetery Foundation and the city of Seaside, and started with a welcome and proclamation from Gov. Gavin Newsom presented by Fernando Pimentel, director of the Veterans Cemetery.

Two County of Monterey Supervisors, District 4 representative Wendy Root-Askew, whose district includes the Veterans Cemetery, and District 5 representative Mary Adams, were part of the roster of speakers at the event.

Root-Askew, who has a few family members who have served, spoke about those in families who are veterans and stressed the importance of encouraging them to tell their stories so that other generations can benefit from learning about their sacrifice.

Adams lauded the efforts of many veterans who give back to their communities in many capacities and highlighted the programs and benefits that are available to veterans through the County of Monterey Military and Veterans Affairs Office.

The event was also the time for the cemetery’s Appreciation Wall to be dedicated.

At the ceremony, Cemetery Foundation Board member Dan Presser said, “Finally, the California Central Coast Veterans Cemetery Appreciation Wall is here, congratulations everybody.”

The wall is here thanks to the foundation, the community and State Sen. John Laird, said Presser. It honors and names those who helped to fund the Veterans Cemetery from small to large donations.Tagging on to a theme first voiced by Supervisor Askew moments before, Sen. John Laird said “many of you have stories and those stories might not outlast you if you don’t tell them.”

In his remarks to the assembly, Laird shared his own story of a veteran in his life.

“My father was a veteran of World War II in Europe and he wouldn’t talk about it for 30 or 40 years. Finally, he and my mom went and started in England and retraced his steps all the way through,” he said. “They came across a farmhouse in Luxembourg and my father remembered being bivouacked there for a number of months..”

Laird said his mother suggested they knock on the farmhouse door.

“The 10-year-old boy who lived on the farm when he was bivouacked there was now the farmer who owned the farm and recognized him and they embraced,” said Laird. “That was a story that would have been lost if it wasn’t told. You have to make sure that you do that.”

Other speakers at the Veterans Day ceremony were Seaside American Legion Post 591 Commander Michael Ward, American Legion District 28 Chaplain Mary Estrada, American Legion Unit 591 President Diana Alvares-Ward, Brenda Thomas, and Sand City Mayor Mary Ann Carbone.