The crowd watches the Troy High School Warrior Band and Color Guard march by during the Fullerton Veterans Day Parade on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Jacqueline White attends the 12th annual Field of Valor event held at Handy Park in Orange on Tuesday, November 10, 2026. “It means a lot, it gives you a lump in your throat for what these flags represent,” she said.
(Photo by Karen Tapia / Orange County Register, SCNG)
Members of the VFW Edward J. Kearns Post 6024 perform the Honor Guard Firing Salute during the 37th annual Veterans Day observance at El Toro Memorial Park on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, in Lake Forest. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Cousins Maiah Farias, 6, and Mares Farias, 2, make use of their patriotic pom-poms as they wait for the Veterans Day Parade to begin in Fullerton on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Francia Avelar, a former Marine, holds her 2-year-old son, Jeremiah Toro, both of Orange. They attended the 12th annual Field of Valor event held at Handy Park on Tuesday, November 10, 2026. (Photo by Karen Tapia / Orange County Register, SCNG)
Bagpiper Richard Cook performs Amazing Grace during the 37th annual Veterans Day observance at El Toro Memorial Park on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, in Lake Forest. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Vietnam Army veteran Jose Perez, assisted by his son Isaac Perez, walks to the Hillcrest Park War Memorial for a photo after Fullerton’s Veterans Day ceremony on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. Perez says he suffers from PTSD and other health issues related to his year in combat. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Tricia Romero’s dog, Mildred Louise, hangs out during the 37th annual Veterans Day observance at El Toro Memorial Park on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, in Lake Forest. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Troy High School’s Navy JROTC marches in Fullerton’s Veterans Day parade on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Army combat veteran Douglas Cox, left, along with others, salutes as Taps closes out the Fullerton Veterans Day ceremony on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Brayden Savala, 4, walks through a sea of 1,225 flags, each representing the ultimate sacrifice, at the 12th annual Field of Valor event held at Handy Park in Orange on Tuesday, November 10, 2026. (Photo by Karen Tapia / Orange County Register, SCNG)
Troy High School Warrior Band and Color Guard perform in Fullerton’s Veterans Day parade on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A man sits near flags on Veterans Day observance at El Toro Memorial Park on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, in Lake Forest. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Mark Furlan, U.S. Army Chaplain Corps, Vietnam Veteran, speaks during the 37th annual Veterans Day observance at El Toro Memorial Park on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, in Lake Forest. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Flags on graves during the 37th annual Veterans Day observance at El Toro Memorial Park on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, in Lake Forest. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Troy High School’s Navy JROTC marches in Fullerton’s Veterans Day parade on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
1 of 16
The crowd watches the Troy High School Warrior Band and Color Guard march by during the Fullerton Veterans Day Parade on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Tributes to military service and the veterans who answered the call of duty were hosted in all corners of Orange County on Wednesday.
Two Veterans Day traditions are a parade in Fullerton that ends with a ceremony at Hillcrest Park and a community ceremony at El Toro Memorial Park in Lake Forest.
Veterans mustered on Berkeley Avenue in Fullerton on Wednesday morning to march down Harbor Boulevard the short distance to the park and the following ceremony, passing community members who lined the street waving flags and red and blue pom poms. Local high school bands and JROTC programs marched along with the veterans.
At the cemetery in Lake Forest, rifle shots rang out in a gun salute, and a bagpiper performed for the ceremony, which also featured speakers and a wreath laying.
For the last several days, residents have also wandered a display of more than 1,200 flags at Orange’s Handy Park that pay tribute to veterans. The annual Field of Valor is organized by the Community Foundation of Orange, raising awareness in the community about service and raising money for veterans groups. It will remain open until noon Thursday, Nov. 12.
