Wareham's annual Veterans Day parade will be held on Friday, Nov. 11 starting at 10:30 a.m. The parade starts on Main Street at Besse Park and will go through Chapel Street, Marion Road and then end at Viking Drive.

Selectmen approved the parade on Tuesday afternoon following a request from the Veterans Day committee. The committee is currently waiting for a potential grand marshal to accept the role. Though one person has been selected, the committee is waiting to see if they will lead the ceremony.

Blue Star mother Ilene Klaver appeared before Selectmen on Tuesday and explained the importance of honoring veterans and their service.

"I'm a three Blue Star mother. I have a son who is in the Army, a grandson who is in the Navy and a granddaughter who is early enlistment in the Air Force. I'm also the daughter of a World War II veteran," said Klaver. "So many of them have just not gotten the recognition they deserve, and I really feel it's our responsibility to show them how much we appreciate everything that they're willing to sacrifice."

Selectmen Peter Teitelbaum, who was a history major in college, explained that Veterans Day originally began as Armistice Day, celebrating the end of World War I when German forces laid their arms down. It occurred on the eleventh hour of the eleventh month on the eleventh day. Now, the celebration has expanded to include all veterans. Unlike Memorial Day, this holiday celebrates those who have survived war and those serving in the military.