Celebrate Freedom Series Events
24th Annual Veterans Parade at Fort Vancouver
November 6, 2010
New parade route! Download the parade route map!
For more than 20 years, Vancouver has honored veterans with this annual Department of Defense sanctioned parade, presented by the Lough Legacy. The parade starts with a 21-gun salute fired by Howitzer cannons from the Parade Ground of the Fort Vancouver National Site, continues along Officers Row, turns south at the traffic circle to follow Fort Vancouver Way through the Vancouver Barracks, and then turns east onto Fifth Street to pass in front of the reconstructed Fort Vancouver and ends at the Pearson Air Museum. The parade route will NOT go through downtown Vancouver this year and will not end at Esther Short Park. More t
han 100 military, veteran and civic organizations and 2,500 individuals participate in the parade. Join us for one of the largest DOD-sanctioned veterans parades on the West coast.
How to register for the 2010 Veterans Parade at Fort Vancouver: Complete and return both forms below.
Download the parade entry form Download the waiver/release form
Flag Day Ceremony
June 14, 2010
Join us for Celebrate Freedom's patriotic Flag Day Ceremony, presented by Veolia Water and held at the Bandstand on the Fort Vancouver National Site Parade Ground. During this ceremony the community gathers to participate in the Annual National Pause for the Pledge and pay their respect to our country's national symbol. This youth focused event draws participation from local 5th grade classes, Boy and Girl Scouts, Cub Scouts, school bands, military personnel, elected officials and community members.
View an interview about the Flag Day ceremony.
View the 2010 Flag Day Ceremony
The General George C. Marshall Lecture
May 20, 2010:
Jonathan B. Jarvis, Director of the National Park Service, presented the General George C. Marshall Lecture
Click here for photos of the Marshall Lecture with Jon Jarvis
General Marshall's tenure at the Vancouver Barracks and his unparalleled record of exemplary public service left an indelible impression on our community, where he remains greatly revered. His legacy was the catalyst for our Celebrate Freedom programs. The Marshall Lecture is the centerpiece of these patriotic programs, established in Vancouver in 1989 to foster public service, leadership, patriotism, and to honor the rich heritage of our community.
Each year we invite a national leader to deliver the Marshall Lecture to some 5,000 students and community members in attendance, and it is also broadcast to more than a million Northwest regional viewers through education television networks and other cable broadcasting channels. The lecture is delivered at Hudson Bay High School, which is located adjacent to the 366-acre Fort Vancouver National Site campus.
The past lecturers form a distinguished group, who each reflected on General Marshall's legacy with great personal perspective for our future. These have included, at the time of their address: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Colin Powell; Ambassador Rozanne Ridgway; Ambassador Paul Nitze; Ambassador Bill Richardson; Secretary of State Madeleine Albright; Senator Daniel Inouye; Rt. Honorable Christopher Patten; Rear Admiral (Ret.) and American Red Cross President, Marsha Evans; NBC Nightly News Anchor Tom Brokaw, who joined us in Vancouver along with 56 of the individuals profiled in his book, The Greatest Generation, Chief of Staff for the Department of Veterans Affairs Lt. General Claude M. Kicklighter (Ret.), and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Peter Pace.
In 1998, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright called the Marshall Lecture "one of the most prestigious lecture series in the United States." This signature Celebrate Freedom event provides an opportunity to witness history in the making as world class speakers deliver relevant remarks on world affairs, with a Marshall influence.
Celebrate Freedom Contact Info
Kim Hash
360.992.1804
Email Kim
