{"id":31317,"date":"2025-11-11T18:52:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-11T18:52:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/31317\/"},"modified":"2025-11-11T18:52:10","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T18:52:10","slug":"veterans-day-ceremony-held-at-city-park","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/31317\/","title":{"rendered":"Veterans Day ceremony held at City Park."},"content":{"rendered":"

Standing in Reading\u2019s Veterans Memorial Grove beneath gray skies late Tuesday morning, a frigid wind whipping through City Park, retired Army Chief Warrant Officer Will Tobin spoke about commitment.<\/p>\n

He talked about the incredible level of commitment to their country shown by the men and women who have put their lives on the line to serve in the United States armed forces. And he spoke about the commitment the country needs to have to them in return, particularly in light of the struggle so many veterans face.<\/p>\n

The veterans community has high incidences of financial strain, housing insecurity and mental health struggles, said Tobin, deputy director of the Berks County Veterans Affairs Office.<\/p>\n

Mental health struggles, Tobin said, are found in the community at an alarming rate. Veterans make up only 4% of the local population but account for 26% of suicides.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a call to action for all of us to do more,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"VeteransVeterans salute during the playing of taps in a Veterans Day service at City Park on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (BILL UHRICH\/READING EAGLE)<\/p>\n

Those affected, Tobin said, are mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters. They\u2019re neighbors and they\u2019re friends.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey shape our schools, our neighborhoods and our local businesses,\u201d he said. \u201cThey strengthen and bond our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tobin\u2019s poignant remarks came during the annual Veterans Day service hosted at the park by the organizations of The Combined Veterans Council of Berks County.<\/p>\n

\"VietnamVietnam War Purple Heart recipient Mike Mescavage of Hamburg plays taps during a Veterans Day service at City Park on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (BILL UHRICH\/READING EAGLE)<\/p>\n

The event, which was attended by about 100 people, gave the community a chance to show appreciation for those who served and renew their commitment to supporting them.<\/p>\n

State Rep. Johanny Cepeda-Freytiz said veterans\u2019 service is the reason children are able to play in the park, that small businesses can operate, that parents can build families.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m grateful for your sacrifice, for your work, for your dedication,\u201d she said of veterans. \u201cYou have given of your life to us, and we need to do more to protect you.\u201d<\/p>\n

City Council President Donna Reed used Tuesday\u2019s bone-chilling weather to illustrate her point, saying the discomfort the crowd felt should make them think about the conditions so many veterans faced during their times in service.<\/p>\n

\"VeteransVeterans gather to hear Retired Chief Warrant Officer Will Tobin offer remarks during a Veterans Day service at City Park on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (BILL UHRICH\/READING EAGLE)<\/p>\n

They faced those challenges out of a sense of duty, out of a desire to protect.<\/p>\n

\u201cTheir hearts were in public service, their hearts were to protect us,\u201d Reed said. \u201cTheir hearts were to protect the constitution that protects all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Standing in Reading\u2019s Veterans Memorial Grove beneath gray skies late Tuesday morning, a frigid wind whipping through City…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":31318,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[349,182,139,28,128,130,129,706],"class_list":{"0":"post-31317","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-reading","8":"tag-berks-county","9":"tag-local-news","10":"tag-news","11":"tag-pennsylvania","12":"tag-reading-city","13":"tag-reading-city-headlines","14":"tag-reading-city-news","15":"tag-top-stories-reg"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31317","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31317"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31317\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}