In recognition of Veterans Day – which is held on November 11 each year to honor the heroism of those who have died in service with all branches of the United States Armed Forces – the African American Military History Museum in Hattiesburg is gearing up for three events to mark that occasion.
Those include a Veterans Open House, a Hattiesburg High School JROTC Veterans Breakfast and a Veterans Day Cocktail Social.
“Operating a military museum has us involved with a number of veterans from across the span of our country’s wartime history,” said Rick Taylor, executive director of the Hattiesburg Convention Commission, which manages the museum. “So our museum staff has been engaged with veterans, and veterans’ groups at the museum.
“So this is kind of a natural evolution, and veterans are an active part of that museum – they support our activities, and they certainly support the growth of the museum and the growth of (The East 6th Street) Museum District. It’s fitting for us to be as supportive – our museums honor them, and so we want to participate in activities that further that honor that’s very much due to them.”
The events are as follows:
Hattiesburg High School JROTC Veterans Breakfast
This event will take place at 7 a.m. November 8 in the dome at the school’s campus, 301 North Hutchinson Avenue in High School.
The breakfast is free of charge for veterans and is held in conjunction with the school’s JROTC program.
A ceremony will be hosted after the breakfast, with posting of the colors and other presentations to recognize Veterans Day.
Veterans Open House
The open house will be held from noon-2 p.m. November 8 at the museum, 305 East 6th Street in Hattiesburg.
Light refreshments will be served, and there will be a special token of appreciation will be presented to all veterans in attendance. The come-and-go event is free of charge and open to the public.
“Our museum is in a (United Service Organizations), so that’s a place where, during wartime, veterans would have congregated and come and gone as the saw fit,” Taylor said. “So that’s certainly how we want to do it.
“There’s a lot of other events going on that day, that (veterans) will be engaged with, so we want to be there for them when it’s convenient to them.”
Veterans Day Cocktail Social
The cocktail social is schedule from 7-10 p.m. November 11 at the museum.
Staff will offer food, cocktails and museum tours, along with live music from the Bass Rhythms and Grooves Band. The ticketed event is being held in partnership with master sergeants David Brooks and Torrence Green, along with the and the 3rd Non-Commissioned Officer Academy and the 154th Regional Training Institute from Camp Shelby.
Tickets are $25 per person and can be purchased by calling (601) 450-1942.
Taylor said previous events in the past have been received extremely well.
“It’s been very positive,” he said. “One of the great things that I have enjoyed about our work with the African American Military History Museum – and what I’ve learned – is that service in the military creates a brotherhood that transcends all other differences that people may have.
“While this is an African American-focused museum, for veterans of the military, it’s more a military museum and the brotherhood of being in the military, than any specific differences we may have in our society. To watch and observe that over time – the quite diverse group of folks that are engaged with the museum – it’s encouraging and heartening.”
