A Veterans Day commemoration ceremony will take place in front of Old Main today at 9:30 a.m., as a tribute to thank war veterans for their service to the United States.

Veterans of Foreign Wars posts from Charleston and Mattoon and the Mattoon American Legion will join the Black Knights of the Embarras and others at Eastern.

“One way to honor those who made sacrifices is to honor those who serve,” said Charleston Mayor John Inyart, a speaker at today’s ceremony.

Both his father and grandfather were veterans of foreign wars. Inyart said he has the duty to support veterans.

“For me, (I say) a simple thank you and listen to them,” Inyart said. “It does affect everyone. People understand that the community greatly appreciates the men and women that served and are serving.”

Another speaker today, Lt. Col. Larry Coblentz, chair of the department of military science, originally enlisted in 1990.

In his first tour, he was in a satellite battalion in Okinawa, Japan, before taking a five-year position in Germany as executive officer of a strategic signal battalion, among other staff positions.

Coblentz said he gained personal gratification from being overseas.

“As far as professional development and personal development, the ability to appreciate other cultures helps apply it back in the United States to understand exactly what it is we have,” Coblentz said.

From his time spent abroad, Coblentz said he noticed regulations, tax laws and the legal systems were more stringent in other countries.

“By honoring those who came before us, we can provide a better understanding of being American,” Coblentz said.

Having a long military career, Coblentz said the celebration of Veterans Day has grown important to him.

The weekend as a whole is like an observation, he said.

“Personally, I spend one day in remembrance, which basically means reflection. I spend one day in tribute with the ceremony. Then I like to spend a day actually living in the result of what others have fought for,” Coblentz said.

He noted the importance of military support groups, both official and unofficial. The Black Knights of the Embarras and VFW posts, for example, help ease soldiers into civilian life by attracting like-minded people, he said.

“There’s no real way to simulate what a solider goes through to the average civilian,” Coblentz said. “A community may not be able to identify with some things soldiers have been through, seen or done.”