County, city mark Veterans Day

Merced County citizens and officials will honor the nation’s veterans Friday with ceremonies and parades.

The annual Merced Veterans Day Parade begins with a ceremony at noon in Bob Hart Square at the corner of Canal and Main streets. The parade will follow at 1 p.m. on Main Street, between G and O streets.

Several veterans will be honored as parade grand marshals, including Doug Torres, Normand Cloutier, Samuel Estrada, Chuck Fennessy, Joe Biscaglio, Jose Hurtado and Bob Abasta. Profiles of the veterans are featured in the Veterans Day special section in Friday’s Merced Sun-Star.

At 4 p.m., veterans, community groups and other dignitaries will gather at Merced College to mark the closing ceremony for the Merced Field of Honor, the display of flags honoring veterans, active-duty military and first responders. The ceremony also will mark the honorary dedication of M Street as Veterans Boulevard.

Merced County public schools will be closed for the holiday, along with colleges and universities.

City and county offices will be closed, along with banks, courts, libraries and postal services.

Merced city residents with Friday refuse collection will have trash collected on Saturday, according to the city.

Normal business hours will resume on Monday.

This story was originally published November 10, 2016 at 4:06 PM with the headline "County, city mark Veterans Day."