Hundreds of veterans from all recent wars, from the various branches of the services, with families and loved ones, filled the hall at the National Guard armory in Knoxville on Monday morning, for a special breakfast in tribute to them and the service they gave.

The Knoxville Hy-Vee sponsored this Veterans Day meal, and invited all veterans organizations to take part. They had tables on hand for the morning, inviting vets from more recent wars to join with them and bolster their membership numbers

Conrad Nelson from the American Legion tells KNIA/KRLS News they drew in vets of every stripe, coming together to meet with each other and to be recognized.

“We have a few World War II veterans that are here, and then Korea, and then in my case I’m a Vietnam veteran — I did three tours over there on my ship. And we do have the Iraq-Afghanistan veterans that are here, too,” Nelson says. “So it’s a good mix of veterans.”

Richard Jones served in Vietnam from 1967 to ‘68, and says he not only enjoyed a good meal but was glad to meet with some old friends and to see that the community still cares about the service he and others gave.

“That’s nice that the community does support us in the way they do. And this breakfast thing, that’s pretty special for me,” says Jones.

Joining in the celebration was the concert band from Knoxville Middle School, which provided music for the diners to enjoy.

Hy-Vee says about 400 veterans and their families were served.