More than 100 citizens gathered in front of the Greene County Courthouse at 11 a.m. Wednesday to take part in the county's traditional Veterans Day program.

State Rep. David Hawk, R-5th, of Greeneville, the guest speaker, thanked the veterans in the audience for their service and urged them to "share your story" with young people.

He also urged younger members of the audience, which included several members of the Greeneville High School U.S. Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps unit, to "seek out veterans" and listen to their stories.

Hawk said that being able to share their stories with a younger person could be the "best part" of a veteran's day.

In comments directed to the veterans in the audience, Hawk said, "Every generation has its heroes, but, in my view, you are heroes for all time."

The Tennessee legislator declared that the present generation of U.S. military personnel is performing up to par with the members of the "Greatest Generation," the name collectively given to the generation of Americans that won World War II.

Also during his remarks, state Rep. Hawk labeled last week's shootings of soldiers at Fort Hood, Texas, "a senseless act of terrorism." The remark drew applause from the audience.

The Veterans Day program began with a welcome from retired U.S. Army Reserve First Sgt. Gary Beason, who is the commander of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1990.

Beason was the first sergeant of Greeneville's U.S. Army Reserve Company C when it deployed to Kuwait and Iraq during 2004-05.

He welcomed the audience, which included Gold Star Mothers Kelli Read and Mary Malone, and introduced VFW Post 1990 Chaplain Tom Lassing, who then delivered the invocation beneath a gray sky as a cool breeze blew.

Commander Beason then led the audience in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag.

Greene County Mayor Alan Broyles then read aloud the history of the development of the Gold Star Mother program, noting that families that lost sons in World War I and World War II placed gold stars in the windows of their homes to indicate that they had lost a son or daughter in the war.

Mayor Broyles said American Gold Star Mothers, Inc., had its beginning from the activities of Grace Darling Seibold, mother of George Vaughn Seibold, a World War I U.S. flyer who was killed in action.

"Grace, realizing that self-contained grief is self-destructive, devoted her time and efforts to not only working in the hospital but extending the hand of friendship to other mothers whose sons had lost their lives in military service," the mayor read from a prepared statement.

"She organized a group consisting solely of these special mothers, with the purpose of not only comforting each other, but giving loving care to hospitalized veterans confined in government hospitals far from home," Broyles said.

Local Gold Star mothers Mary Malone and Kelli Read were honored and presented bouquets of roses.

Malone's son, William Malone, was killed in the Vietnam War, while Read's son, Brandon Read, was killed in Iraq.

Louise Rippetoe, another Greene County Gold Star mother who lost a son during the Vietnam War, was unable to attend.

Read and Malone were presented flowers by Sgt. Carolyn Broyles with assistance from GHS Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps member Cecilia Rapp.

The Greene County Honor Guard, which is composed of American Legion Post 64 members, fired three volleys in honor of fallen service members and also will play the military hymn "Taps" to close the ceremony.

Crosses bearing the names of Greene Countians who were killed in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the war in Iraq had been placed on the courthouse lawn on Monday by members of VFW Post 1990 and American Legion Post 64.

Wednesday morning's Veterans Day event here coincided with the timing of the armistice that ended hostilities in the First World War at 11 a.m. on Nov. 11, 1918.

During the program, Sgt. Carolyn Broyles, who is First Vice Commander of VFW Post 1990, read a history of the development of Veterans Day.

She noted that Veterans Day initially was known as Armistice Day, after the armistice that ended World War I.

However, the holiday began being called Veterans Day in 1938 by residents of Emporia, Kan., and officially became a federal holiday celebrated on the second Monday in November in 1971, she said.

The Capitol Theatre, across the street from the courthouse, remained open during and after the Veterans Day Program to give audience members a place to seek warmth, share refreshments and rest.

VFW Post 1990 Commander Beason told the audience that the theatre's owner, Hervie Hartman Jr., had opened the theatre to the audience in honor of his late father.

The VFW Post 1990 Ladies Auxiliary also served refreshments at the General Morgan Inn after the Veterans Day program.