In 1972, Andre Weckstrom was a student at UC Santa Barbara, where he played on the school’s varsity volleyball team. Then, he got drafted.
Not long after, he found himself on a submarine base at Pearl Harbor, tracking submarines and processing encrypted codes.
“It was incredible,” Weckstrom said. “I mean, there was so much going on, especially with the winding down of the war, but there were a lot of things that were happening in the ocean regarding subs.”
Weckstrom was one of hundreds of people who gathered at the Santa Barbara Cemetery on Tuesday morning to commemorate Veterans Day. The annual event was hosted by Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1649 and the Pierre Claeyssens Veterans Foundation.
He said he’s been coming to the Veterans Day ceremony at the cemetery for about 15 years.
“It means a lot,” Weckstrom said. “It just fills my heart with love, and sadness also, for all the people that died.”
The event, hosted by Lt. John Blankenship, featured music and speeches from veterans. The Gold Coast Pipe Band, the Prime Time Band and the Santa Barbara Choral Society performed.
Retired Santa Barbara police Sgt. David Gonzales sang the national anthem. Wreaths representing the different branches of the military also were presented.
Blankenship expressed his gratefulness for everyone who showed up. He told the crowd that years ago, when the event first began, there were about 30 people, and now he estimated the crowd to be more than 1,300.
The keynote speakers for the event were Brig. Gen. Frederick Lopez and his grandson, Ryan Marsh. In a joint presentation, the pair highlighted the past 250 years of military service and the sacrifices veterans have made in different wars.
“To our veterans, we thank you in the depths of our hearts for your service,” Lopez said.
Also in attendance at the event was Richard Mosher, an Air Force veteran who did aeromedical evacuation during the Vietnam War. During his service, Mosher flew injured patients to hospitals in the Philippines, Japan or Taiwan.
Mosher said his time in the service had its good and bad moments, but it allowed him to see parts of the world he will likely never see again.
He added that it was nice to see veterans of his generation receive praise and recognition. He said many Vietnam veterans struggled, and they did not receive the warm welcome that his father’s generation did.
“I’d like to see that they’re supporting the vets,” Mosher said. “You know, we had a hard time when we came back, especially Vietnam veterans, because it was a very unpopular war at the time.”