Virginia Beach Honors Mayor’s Committee for Veterans

Virginia Beach honors and remembers veterans from throughout the region year-round and especially with ceremonies on Memorial Day and Veterans Day each year at the Tidewater Veterans Memorial, located on 19th Street across from the Virginia Beach Convention Center.  

Members of the Virginia Beach Mayor’s Committee for Veterans who planned and produced the 2024 Memorial Day Ceremony, as they do each year, were recognized for their work to honor veterans with a proclamation at the Aug. 13 Virginia Beach City Council meeting. 

“The Mayor’s Committee for Veterans members have volunteered countless hours of their time to ensure the City of Virginia Beach veterans community is one that will forever be honored for their sacrifices,” said Mayor Bobby Dyer during the meeting. “I urge all citizens to express great appreciation and gratitude for the Mayor’s Committee for Veterans for the dedication they commit to this cause on behalf of the city and our military community.” 

In addition to putting together the annual Memorial Day Ceremony, the committee members manage the memorial paver program, which places bricks inscribed with the names of individuals who have served in all branches of the U.S. Armed Services at the William L. "Billy" Myers Sr. Veterans Memorial Park next to the Tidewater Veterans Memorial. Committee members also work with the Hampton Roads Council of Veterans Organizations to help plan and present the Veterans Day Parade and Ceremony, which traditionally is designated as a regional event sanctioned by the Veterans Day National Committee. 

The committee is the custodian of the Tidewater Veterans Memorial, which features striking modern spherical forms, a fountain and flags that represent a world divided by war, an effort to bring all people together and service rendered by veterans. It was dedicated on May 30, 1988, on land donated by the City of Virginia Beach and paid for by the City of Virginia Beach, along with the business sector, community leaders, the military and residents from throughout the Tidewater area. It was based on winning designs submitted in a contest by students from Bayside High School, VoTech and First Colonial High School. 

The Mayor's Committee for Veterans meets at 5:30 p.m. on the fourth Monday of each month (except November and December) at VFW Post 392, 2408 Bowland Parkway, Virginia Beach. Volunteers are needed to join the committee to ensure that these revered traditions continue. 

To learn more about the committee, please email Virgil Hart, committee chairman, at vhart@vbgov.com. 

To order a memorial paver to be installed in the Veterans Memorial Park for Memorial Day 2025, please visit virginiabeach.gov/MCV.