The public is invited to participate in a special event coming up this weekend to celebrate a milestone birthday as well as show appreciation for the members of our military.
An Armed Forces Day Parade and 100th Birthday Celebration for Untied States Navy World War II Veteran Bryce Billetdeaux will take place on Saturday with drivers lining up at 9:30 at the Richland Township Municipal Building in Gibsonia for a 10 a.m. start.
Organizer and District Judge Tom Swan has gotten to know Billetdeaux over the past year and wanted to help give the veteran who lives at St. Barnabas a memorable gift.
“I was thinking, ‘What do you give to a person who is 100 years old and a World War II vet?'” Swan said. “It’s simple, you have a parade for him in his honor. Everybody I’ve talked to is completely supportive of it. It’s a very patriotic and non-political thing that we’re trying to do here. And I think Bryce is very excited about it as well.”
The parade will travel a little over a mile before ending at the Richland VFD. Many groups have already committed to participate.
“With all the social distancing, everyone will stay in their cars. And for a lot of the kids, we have 150 little flags they can wave,” Swan said. “We have a motorcycle group called the Patriot Guard riders and they will lead the procession. We also have rotary members, neighbors, and possibly some judges so it should be a good showing.”
Billetdeaux spent time on several ships from April of 1943 to January of 1946 as Storekeeper First Class but his last assignment was on the island of Okinawa. This event is made possible with assistance from St. Barnabas and the Northern Regional Police Department.