Diamond Bar Honors Its Veterans

Wednesday morning, about 250 people gathered to salute some of the heroes from their community.

Diamond Bar city officials, friends and family gathered for the city's annual Veterans Recognition Ceremony at the Diamond Bar Center.

"It's important to take a step back and honor these people," Mayor Steve Tye said. "They say that freedom isn't free, and it's because of the people who served. And we're fortunate to have the ones here that we do to pay tribute to them. The ones who don't come back are the ones who have paid dearly for our freedom."

The event is spearheaded by the Diamond Bar Senior Club's Veterans Committee, and honors residents who are retired or discharged from military service.

"It's our way of saying thank you to all the guys who answered the call for us," said Joe Piper, the chairman of the Veterans Committee. "The ones who gave up everything, their families, their jobs and their lives to take care of us."

Piper, before announcing he was retiring from the committee, presented the city with a flag that he ordered that read "In Honor of All Veterans Who Served" and featured the seals of the five branches of the military.

But seniors who served were not the only ones honored Wednesday. Ryan Rouse, a 2001 graduate of Diamond Bar High School, was presented with the banner that previously flew in the city, saluting him for his service, first in the Navy, and later the Army.

The event also featured performances from the South Pointe Middle School band, and singer Jamie Beeman.