The Honpa Hongwanji Hilo Betsuin’s 27th annual Veterans Appreciation Service and lunch will be celebrated starting at 9 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 6, in person at 398 Kilauea Ave. and on Zoom.
All veterans, spouses, family and friends, regardless of religious preference, are invited to gather in unity and diversity to honor and appreciate those men and women who served in the armed forces and their families.
The event is free.
The featured speaker will be Lt. Col. Kevin Cronin, commander of the U.S. Army Garrison Pohakuloa Training Area.
Cronin hails from Rowayton, Connecticut, and prior to his arrival to Hawaii Island, he served at the NATO Special Operations Headquarters in Belgium as the director of the NSHQ Operations and Coordination Center.
Cronin was commissioned as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army upon graduation from the U.S. Military Academy in 2003.
In 2008, following graduation from the Special Forces qualification course at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, he was assigned as a Special Forces officer.
Cronin has served in a variety of assignments, ranging from tactical to strategic, including four deployments to Afghanistan, two deployments to Iraq, and deployments to Qatar, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan.
The service will be followed by refreshments in the Sangha Hall.
Contact the Honpa Hongwanji Hilo Betsuin office at (808) 961-6677 if you are planning to attend.
Join Zoom Meeting: https://zoom.us/j/93470607158?pwd=NTdqRDBaUmhSQ2VXZHM5ZzdGOEZGUT09.
Meeting ID: 934 7060 7158. Passcode: HHHB.
The Board of Spiritual Affairs, chaired by Jane Iida, looks forward to everyone’s participation in this auspicious event to honor and remember all who served.