Vietnam veteran Read Armstrong, a former United States Army helicopter pilot, was the keynote speaker of Woolwich’s Veterans Day program on Sunday, Nov. 11. The event in the historic Nequasset Meeting House also marked the 100^th anniversary of the end of World War I.

Armstrong was a member of the Army from July 1968 to December 1970. From July 1969 to July 1970, he served in the Aviation Platoon of the 1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division in Tay Ninh, Republic of Vietnam. He was a Warrant Officer helicopter pilot.

Armstrong said he came from a family who served in the military. His grandfathers both served in World War I and his father was a World War II veteran who was stationed at Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked it. He said, he wished his homecoming from Vietnam had been different.

“It wasn’t that pleasant when I arrived in San Francisco in 1970,” he said, explaining many people then were protesting America’s involvement in the war.

“The good news is, I don’t think this happens to returning veterans today. Maybe what we went through wasn’t in vain. Maybe America has rediscovered the meaning of the words in the ballad 'When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again.'"

Armstrong reminded attendees, it was important to show respect to the men and women who have served or are serving in the armed forces.

After his tour of duty in the Army, Armstrong continued as a helicopter pilot in the Maine National Guard in 1972 and was a member of the 112^th Medical Company (Air Ambulance) until retiring in 1993. He worked at Bath Iron Works until 2011. He’s married to Anne (Comeau) of Bath. They have three children and four grandchildren.

The hour-long program also marked the 100^th anniversary of the end of World War I. Master of Ceremonies Allison Hepler, Woolwich select board member and newly elected District 53 representative, said as a history professor she wondered what it was like when people heard the First World War was finally ending.

“I learned it was on this day, November 11^th, 1918 that over 11,000 men on both sides were killed, wounded or went missing,” she said.

Cpl. Robert Meade of Woolwich, a Korean War veteran, led the gathering in an opening salute to the flag. Meade served in two branches of the U.S. military, the Army and­ the Marine Corps. For many years Meade has chaired the community’s Monument Committee that includes overseeing the care of the Tanner Square Memorial. This memorial on Route 1 was dedicated in 1950 to Pfc. Richard George Tanner, a Woolwich native and paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne. Tanner was killed in action in France on July 4, 1944. Pfc. Tanner is buried at the Normandy American Cemetery in St. Laurent, France.

Also present wearing his Army uniform, helmet included, was Lloyd Coombs, a former Woolwich selectman and administrator.

The Montsweagers provided music playing all the military anthems and other patriotic tunes. One of the highlights was their performance of “Ashokan Farewell,” including a reading of Sullivan Ballou’s letter to his wife Sarah at the start of the Civil War. Ballou was killed in the First Battle of Bull Run, July 21, 1861. They concluded with a stirring rendition of Irving Berlin’s "God Bless America" inviting the audience to sing along.

In his invocation, Rev. David Ouellette of the North Woolwich Methodist Church urged all to try and understand what veterans experience when they return home. “Sometimes they have wounds you don’t see,” he said.

Girl Scout Troop 1570 of Bath posted and retired the colors.

Originally known as Armistice Day, Nov. 11 marked the end of World War I, which took effect at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918. Armistice Day was changed to Veterans Day in 1954 as a way to honor all the men and women who have served in the United States military not only during wartime but during times of peace, too.

The program, arranged by the Special Events Committee, concluded with a standing ovation for all of the military personnel and their families.