After loosing his legs 40 years ago in Vietnam, a Purple Heart recipient felt like he finally received a proper welcoming home.
Garry Johnson said he and other veterans didn't receive proper recognition when they came home from the Vietnam War.
"We didn't get any parades," Johnson, 60, said. "We didn't get anything."
Johnson, a member of the American Legion post 236 in Bronson, traveled to Gainesville for an event with about 1,000 people at the Veterans Memorial at Kanapaha Park on Thursday, Veterans Day.
The event focused on Vietnam veterans.
"We were recognized and saluted, which is something we haven't been," Johnson said. "They finally made us feel at home."
Bernie Campbell, historian for the American Legion post 16 in Gainesville, said the event focuses on a different war each year. She participated in the color guard that stood behind the stage next to the memorial, a concrete base with columns on top commemorating each of America's wars.
Eleven blood donors visited the LifeSouth blood mobile parked nearby, said Clay Gibbons, community development coordinator for LifeSouth.
On days when offices and schools are closed, "we need to be where the people are," said Gibbons, who served in the Air Force.
Iraq veteran and Veterans of Foreign Wars member Matt Taul spent his time at the memorial tabling to inform veterans about benefits such as housing loans and disability. Most veterans do not know they are eligible for benefits or how to get them, he said.
Jennifer Reeger, a UF employee, brought her 12-year-old daughter Emily to educate her about Veterans Day.
"A lot of people just take it as a day off, but I think it's more than that."
Levi Jefferson, who brought her two grandchildren and their dog, Cowboy, to the event, said she did not appreciate Veterans Day until her two sons served in Iraq.
"I wasn't aware how important it was until my boys went," she said.
