The Veterans of Foreign Wars, Post 6311, the American Legion, Post, 249; and the Manteca Mural Society invite the community to attend the Veterans Day Ceremony on Sunday, Nov. 11, at 11 a.m.  

The ceremony will be held in the parking lot of the Bedquarters, facing the Veterans Mural Project, at the northwest corner Main Street and Yosemite Avenue.

The venue of the annual Veterans Day ceremony – usually held at the Veterans memorial at the Manteca Library- is changing to the Bedquarters site this year.  This is being done so the Manteca Mural Society can dedicate the emblems of the six different branches of the military, which will complete the “Veterans Mural Project.”

The 24” x 24” bronze military emblems are impressive and will be the capstone for the “Veterans Mural Project”.  This project includes five 16’ x 20’ murals, arrayed from north to south: ‘The War on Terror,’ ‘The Vietnam war,’ ‘The Korean war,’ ‘World War II’ and ‘World War I.’

The keynote speaker for the Veterans Day ceremony is Norm Knodt, a Vietnam veteran.  Knodt was a Chief Warrant Officer 4 who flew helicopters in Vietnam from January 1968 to January 1969.  He graduated from Manteca High in 1965. He is a Manteca native whose family has deep ties to the community. 

The military emblems complement and provide a finishing touch to the recently completed series of murals. The final painting, the WWI Mural, was formally dedicated on May 19, 2018, celebrating both the 100th year since the end of WWI, and the 100th year of the establishment of our town, tying in nicely with Manteca’s Centennial Celebration.

 Refreshments will be served at the conclusion of the ceremony.