Collegedale honors veterans with annual ceremony and new tank

COLLEGEDALE, Tenn. (WDEF) — Collegedale veterans were honored Friday afternoon at the Veterans Memorial Park in observance of Veterans Day on Saturday.

This celebration has been going on for over 20 years.

The park has added different military structures throughout the years, with the newest addition being unveiled on Friday– a military grade tank.

A local military sergeant explained the significance of this tank, and how he hopes people will learn about its history.

“That tank never took a life. Now children get to play on that tank. And it reminds me of a lot of things that I did back in the day. I served six years. It’s just part of being American,” Sergeant Henry Achey III said.

The tank was welcomed by the Collegedale community on Friday afternoon.

People of all ages were encouraged to take part in honoring their local veterans.

“All veterans are very special. No matter what portion you served, no matter if you served just one day or you served forty years. They’re all very special because this is America. This is the land of the free and the home of the brave,” Achey said.

The park honors all branches of the military across generations.

Commander of the Desmond T. Doss American Legion Post 257, Dennis Smith said, “We like that it covers all veterans old and new. Because that’s what this park’s about.”

Veterans will be honored with many services throughout the weekend.

Various members of the community came out to support servicemen and women.

“Being a veteran, Veterans Day is so special to me. Because people are honoring us, and it always feels good to be honored,” Smith said.

The hope is for this annual tradition to continue for many years to come and to continue to impact future generations.