At the Central Texas Veteran State Cemetery, hundreds of American flags mark each resting place -- it's a quiet salute to to soldiers who are no longer with us.
Wednesday morning, a rousing parade wound it's way through downtown Killeen -- a celebration of the honor and sacrifice made by the men and women in the armed forces.
Members of the city's American Legion, a veterans organization, took part in the parade. Later they came together for an award ceremony decades in the making.
Seven Vietnam vets received the Order of the Silver Rose.
"It's for those people in Vietnam who were injured by Agent Orange, many of them carried lasting scars and health problems for the rest of their lives," said Dan Corbin, American Legion of Texas.
Also there to honor those Vietnam vets was Lt. General Robert Cone, the man who was thrust into the spotlight after the tragic shootings at Fort Hood last week.
Lt. General Cone delivered a heartfelt thank you to those who are there for his troops when they need support the most.
"You are reaching out to these soldiers and families in a way I can tell you in my 40 years of wearing this uniform I have never seen before," Cone said.
