The Navy is celebrating its birthday this month, marking 245 years. The Navy’s roots go all the way back to the American Revolution. On Oct. 13, 1775, the Continental Congress established a Naval Force, The idea was the have a small fleet of privateers that would attack British commerce vessels and offset the power of the British at sea. This group of privateers were used to wage tactical raids against the British vessels that were bringing in supplies and reinforcements to the British Army.

From that humble beginning the U.S. Navy has become a force to be reckoned with. They have thousands of ships and aircraft serving worldwide and have played an instrumental role in every conflict, from the American Revolution to the Gulf War. We salute them and wish them a happy birthday on this, the 245th year of protecting the seas and oceans to preserve our freedoms.

Next month, on Nov. 11, we celebrate Veterans Day. Due to the unfortunate circumstances of COVID-19, the Dickinson County Veterans Alliance had to make a very sad and difficult decision in the early part of the year regarding plans for the Veterans Dinner.

At that time, the governor had everything on lockdown and no large indoor events were allowed. Without any idea of what the future was going to look like, the difficult decision was made to cancel this very popular event. Moving forward, the planning committee is planning to hold the Veterans Day Dinner next year. We thank the committee for all the work that they had put in before the decision was made to cancel.

On Nov. 10, the Dickinson County Office of Veterans Affairs will host a Veterans’ Community Support Event from 2 to 5 p.m. at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 520 W. Breitung Ave. in Kingsford.

We will provide food and door prizes during the event. This is a great opportunity to come out and learn about opportunities for veterans and their families. We will have a veteran counselor from Bay College to answer questions regarding your educational benefits.

The YMCA will be available to discuss the free veteran programs they offer and also the scholarship assistance program they offer for memberships. We have the North Care Veterans Navigator from Marquette and the Vet Center from Escanaba. Freedom for Patriots will be on hand to discuss activities they offer to all veterans, regardless of physical ability.

The Salvation Army will be there to discuss the veterans food pantry and other services they offer, along with the Oscar G. Johnson VA Medical Center, Dickinson-Iron Community Service Agency, UPCAP services, Erickson-Rochon & Nash and Dickinson County Office of Veteran Affairs –all organizations that work with and for our veterans.

We will be taking temperatures and require everyone wear a face covering upon entry. We provide face covering if you don’t have one and will also be handing out mini-bottles of hand sanitizer to each person coming to the event.

Our office is following all health and safety guidelines for this event and look forward to seeing our veterans, their families and others interested in the care and well-being of our veterans. With a lot of these agencies being closed to public, this is the time to get your questions answered and learn about new things available for veterans and their families.

Come join us in celebrating our veterans. In this time of uncertainty, we can assure our veterans that our community cares and remembers the sacrifices they made for our freedoms.

Upcoming events:

Dickinson County Veterans Alliance meeting at 6:30 tonight at the American Legion Post 50, River Avenue in Iron Mountain.

Dickinson County Veterans Affairs Board meeting at 8 a.m. Tuesday at the American Legion Post 50 in Iron Mountain.

Veterans Community Support event, 2 to 5 p.m. Nov. 10 at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Kingsford. Food, prizes, informational booths provided. For more information, contact the office at 906-774-2820.