Veterans get support; the war doesn’t

Veterans Day was observed in two very different ways among Southern California celebrations Sunday: a traditional parade in Boyle Heights and an antiwar service at a church near downtown Los Angeles.

Veterans of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines were honored during the annual Boyle Heights Veterans Day Parade, accompanied by high school marching bands, waving politicians and dancing Aztecs.

The former service members road in the back seats of convertibles and waved to the crowd as the parade made its way down 4th Street to Hollenbeck Park.

“We feel proud and honored that the community doesn’t forget,” said Arturo Herrera, 70, who served in the Air Force from 1957 through 1960. His buddy, Tony Zapata, a Navy veteran who served in Vietnam added, “we loved the outpouring of support.”

A more solemn observance took place at St. John’s Cathedral, where leaders of the Episcopal church attempted to read the names of all American troops killed in Iraq.

But they were unable to make it through the list before the 10 a.m. Mass. “There represents the magnitude of the problem,” Father Mark Kowalewski told those gathered outside the 82-year-old church. “Today we honor all our veterans. Today we honor all those serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. Today we speak to our elected officials and say that this bloodshed must stop.”

There wasn’t a hint of protest in Boyle Heights.

Some observers and even some participants said they were personally opposed to the war.

“We believe the veterans deserve to be honored because they gave a lot for our community,” said Judith Cuauhtemoc, a spokesperson for Danza Azteca Cuauhtemoc. “They need to be cared for.”

Among those honored was Juan Marquez, a 64-year-old Army Special Forces veteran. Marquez said he’d never been a big fan of parades and had reservations about taking part in this one.

“But then I started waving at the kids. And they were waving back. And I could see they were enjoying it,” Marquez said. “Then I started to relax.”

One of the kids was Brisa Aldava, 7, who watched the parade with her parents from in front of her grandparents’ house. She was waving an American flag that had been given to her by an L.A. police officer to replace a smaller one she had from last year’s parade.

Her favorite attraction?

The Aztec dancers, whose rhythmic drum beating, shaking beads and bobbing head dresses seemed to be one of the parade’s biggest draws.

Her father, David Aldava, an auditor for Los Angeles County, said the fact that he has a nephew serving in Iraq has made him more aware of the sacrifices of veterans. He said he hoped the parade would do the same for others.

“Most of the time people take it for granted that people go out there and risk their lives so everyone else can enjoy,” he said.

Celebrations were held throughout the area, including in Monterey Park, Eagle Rock, Altadena, Van Nuys and West Hollywood.

Leaders of St. John’s Cathedral had planned to mark the day by reading the names of the almost 3,900 American service members killed in Iraq. They had allotted two hours for volunteers to make their way through the list before the 10 a.m. Mass. But they still had several pages to go when Mass was set to begin.

Four banners draped the cathedral’s back walls, adorned with crosses and stars representing killed military members and civilians in Iraq.

“There’s a false dichotomy, that if you are against the war, that you’re not in support of veterans,” Father Daniel Ade said.

“There’s no conflict between protesting the war and honoring the service of those in the war,” he added. “The search for peace is not outside the love and respect for those who serve our country.”

About a dozen church members held signs that read: “Blessed are the Peacemakers,” “Bring our Kids Home” or “War is Never the Answer.”

“We’ve always stood for something,” said Valaria McCaw Lincoln, who has been a church member since 1961. “We care and it’s our children and they should be home.”

During the Vietnam War, the cathedral’s large bronze front doors were shut, only to reopen when troops returned home. The doors closed again when the Gulf War began in 1990 and reopened when the war ended a year later.

“This is not something that was imposed on our congregation,” Ade said. “It rose up from our congregation.”

Lynne Gillies, whose son is an Air Force captain based out of Germany, said the church decided nine months ago to oppose the war in Iraq -- a stance that she says still allows her to support her son’s work.

“I’m very proud of him,” she said. “I’m very proud of all our military personnel. We just want to bring them home alive with all of the parts that God gave them at birth.”

Adriana McNally’s son served in Iraq for 13 months. She said the church prayed for him each week, and comforted her in times of despair.

“It has been a source of strength for me,” McNally said. “I’m openly against the violence, the senselessness of it. I try not to think about the war, but an end to the war.”

Herrera and Zapata, the Navy and Air Force veterans who rode side-by-side in a convertible in the Boyle Heights parade, said they had no problem with the observance at the cathedral when it was described to them by a reporter.

“That’s no dishonor,” Zapata said, pausing, as if to search for words.

jp.renaud@latimes.com

scott.glover@latimes.com