Last year, members of the Hattiesburg Disabled American Veterans Chapter No. 62 instituted the inaugural VetFest after putting together a mast list of all the organizations that could help veterans in the Hub City with issues like homelessness, food insecurity and mental health.
With the success of that event – which featured live music and food vendors – VetFest will continue this year from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. May 20 (Armed Forces Day) at Town Square Park in downtown Hattiesburg. In addition to the music, VetFest 2023 will also showcase businesses that can help veterans with information and other types of aid.
“There are really two main reasons (for this),” said Mark Jordan, veterans assistance officer for DAV No. 62. “One was to find out what veteran-owned businesses were in the Pine Belt area, and two, what business or service providers serviced veterans in the local area.
“So it kind of started there, and it’s morphed into a celebration, certainly an ‘in memory of’ all those friends and family members from the service that have gone on, and we talk about their sacrifice. But it’s primarily a fun, family day in the park to come out and honor veterans, both past and present.”
The free, expo-style event will allow veteran-owned businesses to meet with each other and expand their brand by displaying their products and services to the community. The Jackson VA will have its Mobile Medical Clinic on site, and all veterans are invited to get health screenings and learn about other VA services.
The Veterans Affair Clinic from Merit Health Wesley also will be in attendance to provide registration for veterans interested in enrolling in VA healthcare.
“At the beginning, we’ll start out with our ceremonial process; we’ll retire the colors and do the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem,” Jordan said. “Then we’ll bring in a couple of guest speakers, and Mayor (Toby Barker) will be present, and (members of) the Forrest County Board of Supervisors will be one of the main speakers.
“So we’ll go through the formality part first, and then we’ll have a couple of live local acts, and we’ll have the 41at band out of Jackson. The Youth Challenge Drum Corps will be providing us with some entertainment as well, and we have a local DJ who’s a veteran.”
Donations to the event were made by WalMart of Waynesboro, Parris Jewelers and Hotel Indigo. Because of that strong community support, DAV officials also will offer free giveaways throughout the day from local businesses, including a TV, a $500 gift certificate and a one-night hotel stay.
“We’ve got about a $200 gift certificate for people who like bikes, like me, that need a bike repaired every year, from Moore’s Bicycle Shop,” Jordan said. “The support from our sponsors has just been outstanding.
“We couldn’t have asked for a better community to be in.”
In addition, bounce houses will be provided for children.
Jordan said last year’s turnout was very impressive, with more than 500 people participating in the festival.
“We had different military organizations, the local chapter here added some members, the VA clinic at (Merit Health Wesley) got more veterans signed up,” he said. “Some of the other service providers gave wonderful information to some of our homeless veterans; it was an absolute home run.”
