Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 7

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade


At first I thought, "Don't know which veterans are riding in this vintage Cadillac." Then, "Oh, yes, I do. Lucky veterans to get to ride in such a beauty!" Then I found this online at the Oregonian about the folks and the vehicle: "Supporters of JOIN, a group created to help homeless veterans, ride in a 1958 Cadillac automobile during the Veteran's Day Parade Friday in the Hollywood District." Cool.


More lucky veterans in this vintage Ford Fairlane. Flickr friend Terry says it is a 1957. That was what I figured, but it's nice to have back up. While I love two-tone vintage vehicles, this one is actually a three-tone vehicle because the roof is a lighter version of the sort of steel blue gray on the lower portion of the side of the car. Very exciting to see for me, someone always head-over-heels where vintage vehicles are concerned.


AMVets Post 66, AMVets Riders Chapter 66, Portland, Oregon, in a vintage Dodge Coronet.


AMVets Post 66, AMVets Riders Chapter 66, Portland, Oregon, in a vintage Studebaker. This is the happiest car I think I've ever seen. It seems to be smiling broadly, proud of being included in the parade.


Here it looks like a little Frenchman to me, complete with a silver mustache.


1st Cavalry Division Association, Columbia Willamette Chapter. Gotta love this Chevrolet Apache pickup truck.


It's a two-tone beaut.


Picture perfect vintage Ford pickup.

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 6

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade

Several vehicles had banners or signs that identified their riders.


Military Order of the Purple Heart, Portland, Oregon chapter. I adore that smile.


American Legion members on a trailer. The woman on the right is so lovely to me.


Women Marines Association. Another special smile.


USMC, the United States Marine Corps. This wonderful vintage vehicle, which Flickr friend Terry has identified as a 1940 Deluxe Ford panel truck, is the perfect lead-in to tomorrow's post, the last of the ones which feature veterans on wheels.

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 5

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade


Vets on some sort of tracked vehicle. I certainly don't know for sure, but it looks like an Army tank of some sort to me. Does anyone know? I'll bet that little guy in the middle had a great time riding up there. Don't miss the driver. The concentration on his face is impressive.


The sign on this Jeep reads, "25th Infantry Division: Pearl Harbor, Guadalcanal, New Georgia, Luzon, Japan, Korea, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Bosnia, Haiti, Afghanistan, Iraq."


This Jeep followed the tank. Definitely Army.


Here's the motorcyclist shaking hands with a vet in the Jeep.


One more vintage Army vehicle.


Is this a Jeep, too? Next to the tank, it's my favorite of these Army vehicles. Something about it just appeals to me.


I like the flags on this one.


Definitely some sort of truck. Troop carrier?

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 4

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade

I’m on the TV news, at the parade! Watch the video here! My friend Diane, who is the mother of an active duty serviceman, and I had a great time, waving at everyone and thanking those veterans within earshot. We're right after Art, the reporter, says, "It's an honor everyone says is well-deserved." I put my camera down, she waves and I clap. It's a hoot!

I thoroughly enjoyed the rumble of many motorcycles at the start of the parade.

The only motorcyclist I could identify as a woman. She looks like she's having a blast! And she must ride quite a bit because you can see those patches there beneath her right elbow--the bottom one reads "10,000 Miles." At the top of the that column of patches is one that reads "HOG Mileage Est. 1995." HOG stands for Harley Owners Group. On the back of her jacket is a huge patch that reads "Sunset Chapter Tigard Oregon HOG Harley Owners Group." Way cool.


Obviously veterans are among this group of motorcyclists. Many had decals on their windshields and patches on their jackets in support of their service and other veterans.


How about the coonskin cap? I think from this angle you really get an idea of how it looks stretched over a motorcycle helmet.


Super cool flags. He swerved back and forth for several hundred feet before he reached the intersection that represented the end of the parade route.

Then a group of motorcycles appeared at the end of the parade. I don't know if they're the same people, though. I surmise that they are.

Here's the motorcyclist flashing a thumbs up to parade participants on motorcycles. Neat!


This patriotic motorcycle with a sidecar looks so cool.




A couple of nice smiles on those last two motorcyclists.

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 3

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade


Periodically this motorcyclist walked out to a parade participant or vehicle, paused at attention and/or saluted the veterans. Brought a tear to my eye and a catch in my breath every single time he did it. Brought a smile to every single person he saluted. I felt very good to see such respect in action.


He always made sure there was a stoppage in the parade's motion before approaching a vehicle.

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 2

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade


This veteran's hat reads Special Forces across the front.


Gotta love his furry passenger.

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 1

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade


Look closely and you can see through the windshield, Dr. George Timmons, Grand Marshall of the 37th annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade. Found this on the Internet about Dr. Timmons: Army veteran Dr. George Timmons, 91, of Portland, will serve as this year’s Grand Marshal. Timmons was originally sent to the Pacific Ocean Theater of WWII as a member of a military band. However, he soon traded his trombone for a rifle and became part of the Army’s 41st Division’s fight with the Japanese on Biak Island off New Guinea’s Papua coast. Following his military service he served as assistant dean of education at Portland State University and led a swing orchestra for several years.


Hard to believe Dr. Timmons is 91 years old! Note the six-shooter door handle on the Cadillac El Dorado. Accentuated on the trunk lid, the car's nickname, El Moo, a la the steer horns mounted on the hood, no doubt.