TRADITION
Fri, 2016-07-08 05:00
News Staff
July 4 bell ringing ceremony, barbecue
By LYNETTE SOWELL
Cove Leader-Press
As part of its longstanding Independence Day tradition, The Olan Forest Smith Post 8577 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and Auxiliary held a bell ringing on the 4th of July.
Nationwide, VFW posts ring the bell of freedom and liberty at 11 a.m. every Independence Day, and on Monday, that tradition was kept in Copperas Cove as it has been for more than 50 years.
Michale Jackson, a cadet with the Copperas Cove High School JROTC, read the name of each of the 13 American Colonies which declared their independence from Great Britain on July 4, 1776. After each announcement, 6-year-old Holly Trevathen struck the bell.
Prior to the bell ringing, the ceremony kicked off with a cannon shot from a 19th century reproduction cannon.
The JROTC cadets presented the flags at the ceremony, during which Cadet Thomas Dossett read a speech on the history of the United States’ independence, penned by VFW Post 8577 member Daniel Sellers.
“The fourth of July would ultimately become the most revered holiday in our country. 240 years ago, it was just a hot summer day,” read Dossett. “Our forefathers went up against the most substantial empire since ancient Rome. No colony had ever successfully left its mother country to set up a self-governing state. Not only were the historical odds set against them, they were set to fight against the world’s most powerful Navy. King George III sent a massive armada to what became the largest amphibious assault of the 18th century, over 300 ships and 32,000 men.”
Seller’s words addressed the criticism that the United States is the richest country in the world.
“Let me suggest that we are proudly the richest country in the world. We are rich in our multicultural heritage, rich in our traditions, rich in our commercial spirit, our zest for the unknown, and are rich in the future.
The American colonies became the United States of America because of our determination, our self-discipline, and most of all, our dream.”
After the ceremony, those who attended went indoors where a barbecue lunch was set out. The post opens the event to the public every July 4. Approximately 40 attended the annual commemoration on Monday.