DeKalb County recognized the many men and women who have made it possible for Americans to enjoy their freedom Monday.
A Veterans Day program was held Monday morning at the DeKalb County Complex auditorium.
The event boasted performances by the DeKalb County High School Chorus and Fighting Tiger Band. State Representative Terri Lynn Weaver delivered a rendition of the Star Spangled Banner, and Susan Hinton read a poem in tribute to veterans.
Sarah Tinch, a Veterans Benefit Representative was the keynote speaker.
“Today, we come together to remember, honor and pay tribute to our heroes – ordinary men and women who set aside their own personal freedom to defend and protect our nation from those who would threaten our way of life. They left the comfort of their homes and families for hostile lands far away to fight on foreign soil, so that we would never have to fight on our own soil – lands such as Iwo Jima, Seoul, Khe Sanh, and Fallujah. Ordinary men and women who did extraordinary things,” Tinch told the assembly.
After the event at the county complex, a motorcade led by Sheriff Patrick Ray saw the Veterans bus safely downtown to the  veterans memorial monument where they laid a wreath to commemorate fallen veteran's. The motorcade included DeKalb EMS, the Smithville Volunteer Fire Department and the Smithville Police Department.
Judy Redmon read names of veterans who have passed away since last Veteran’s Day, and DCHS student Emma Rigsby closed the ceremony with the playing of Taps.
The Veterans were then taken by bus back to the county complex, where they enjoyed a meal served by local senior citizens, members of Leadership DeKalb and the Woodmen of the World.
The poem Hinton read follows:
Unselfishly, you left your fathers and your mothers,
You left behind your sisters and your brothers
Leaving your beloved children and wives
You put on hold, your dreams your lives
On foreign soil, you found yourself planted
To fight for those whose freedom you granted
Without your sacrifice, their cause would be lost
But you carried onward, no matter the cost
Many horrors you had endured and seen.
Many faces had haunted your dreams.
You cheered as your enemies littered the ground
You cried as your brothers fell all around
When it was over, you all came back home
Some were left with memories to face all alone
Some found themselves in the company of friends
As their crosses cast shadows across the land
Those who survived were forever scarred
Emotionally, physically, permanently marred
Those who did not now sleep eternally
Neath the ground they had given their lives to keep free
With a hand upon my heart, I feel
The pride and respect; my reverence is revealed
In the tears that now stream down my upturned face
As our flag waves above you, in her glory and grace
Freedom was the gift that you unselfishly gave
Pain and death was the price that you ultimately paid
Every day, I give my utmost admiration
To those who had fought to defend our nation.