COUNTYWIDE : Veterans Ceremonies Planned

Several Veterans Day ceremonies are scheduled throughout the county today.

Sen. John Seymour (R-Calif.) and Rep. Robert J. Lagomarsino (R-Ventura) are scheduled to be keynote speakers at the Oxnard War Memorial’s dedication ceremony. The memorial, located in Plaza Park, will consist of five granite pyramids arranged in a semicircle, with the names of Oxnard veterans who died in action engraved in the granite. Each pyramid honors veterans from a different war: World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the Persian Gulf War.

A citizens committee headed by Councilman Manuel Lopez and Mayor Pro Tem Gerry Furr raised $55,000 to pay for the monument, which was built with donated labor from local union shops. The committee will continue to solicit donations to pay for lighting and upkeep.

The 1 p.m. dedication ceremony will begin with a veterans parade and conclude with an Air Force squadron flyby and a rifle salute by a Marine Corps rifle team.

In Moorpark, American Legion Post No. 502 will raise a new flag and place a memorial wreath at the corner of Moorpark and Los Angeles avenues at 10:30 a.m.

In Santa Paula, veterans groups will sponsor a breakfast starting at 7:30 a.m. at the Santa Paula Community Center. All veterans eat free. At 10:30 a.m., a service will be held at the veterans memorial in Civic Center Park.

Also today, officials of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and the Conejo chapter of the Military Order of World Wars will sponsor a ceremony at the newly opened library in Simi Valley. The colors will be raised at 9:45 a.m., followed by a ceremony featuring local officials.

The library museum will be open after the ceremony.