The city of Atmore took time Monday afternoon to publicly recognize area veterans and all who have served their country.

Following the completion of the council’s regular meeting, Mayor Jim Staff opened the city’s Veterans Day program.

“Our veterans have done so much for us,” he said. “We need to always keep them in mind. This is just a wonderful gathering.”

The ceremony was held in the city hall auditorium, with dozens of veterans in attendance from every branch of the military. Many wore patriotic clothing or insignia from veterans’ organizations.

The Rev. Debora Bishop, pastor of First United Methodist Church, gave the invocation. Bishop is also a veteran, serving 20 years in the Marines before retiring as a lieutenant colonel.

Megan Young sang the national anthem, Lana Langford sang “God Bless the U.S.A.” and Whitney Maholovich performed an a capella version of “God Bless America.” Dietrich Bondurant also performed the national anthem on his trumpet.

Prior to the closing prayer by Don Davis, pastor of First Assembly of God, Staff read a city proclamation thanking veterans for their service. The proclamation read:

“Whereas, veterans seek to preserve and strengthen camaraderie, assist needy comrades, perpetuate the memory and history of deceased veterans; and assist families of veterans; and,

“Whereas, these courageous patriots have made tremendous sacrifices as they answered the call to arms in true allegiance to the Government of the United States of America and fidelity to its Constitution and laws, and,

“Whereas, they have demonstrated true patriotism in preserving and defending the United States of America from enemies; and,

“Now, therefore, I, Jim Staff, Mayor of the City of Atmore, County of Escambia, State of Alabama, by virtue of the authority vested in me under the municipal laws of the State of Alabama, join with all groups and agencies dedicated to raising awareness of the veterans’ plight, struggles and challenges ¬— those on active duty, those who are stateside, those on foreign soil, and those who have returned home. I encourage all citizens to pay tribute and express heartfelt gratitude to those men and women who risked their lives in the defense of the freedoms we enjoy as American citizens on Veterans Day and throughout the entire year.”