Hosting A Successful Veterans Day Event

Veterans Day is coming up. Do you have plans to honor the more than 17 million veterans living in the U.S.? Often these events turn into a big “thank you”, but they can be so much more than that.

Your Veterans Day event can be an opportunity to not honor those who have served AND inspire the attendees. Bringing people together to remember their act of service and support veterans among us. Many of our fellow Americans are unaware of the challenges veterans can face. Did you know that 48% of Gulf War II era veterans have some degree of service-connected disability?

While much of the public do not see the price paid by our veterans, the vets themselves are working quietly as most of us do. American veterans work in our schools, businesses medical community and more. They support every area of our society. So, how do you create an event that is truly meaningful and uplifts both veterans and your Houston community?

Don’t Stop Half-Way! Feel the Success of Having a Truly Meaningful Event

Waving a few flags and saying a few words is not going far enough…not if you want an event that will support all veterans and their families. Here are some ideas that you can use in your event:

Cards and Invitations

Invite local veterans, but don’t just send an email. Send physical cards that include a thank you for their service. Pay special attention to recent and returning veterans who may still be readapting to civilian life.

Invited Speakers

Spotlight veterans in your event by inviting one or more to give a talk. This is particularly good for school events, where veterans can share their experiences with students and help kids learn about military history. You don’t need to find somebody “famous.” Somebody’s parent or grandparent who served can have plenty of interesting things to say.
If you’re not sure where to find speakers, contact your local VA and talk to their Public Affairs Officer. Remember that with modern technology you can invite a speaker who might be unable to attend the event physically.

Play an Army-Navy Game

(Or any other two branches). Find some local veterans and arrange for an inter-service challenge. It can be at anything…bowling? Pickleball? Board games? Make sure the winners get bragging rights or even a small prize.

Add Support for Veteran-Owned Businesses

As much as possible, use local veteran-owned businesses for your event. Depending on your budget, you might offer veteran-owned businesses free or discounted advertising. Print and distribute a list of those businesses in your program or hand it out.

Supporting veteran-owned businesses is a great way to give back! It allows a method for your community without anyone feeling as if “charity” is involved.

Pass the Hat for the Veterans Association

Make a donation or take donations to a local charity or to Veterans Affairs. There are numerous opportunities in and around Houston. You can also fundraise for an individual veteran or family that is in distress because of an incident such as a house fire.

A bake sale, craft sale, or raffle can also be used to support veterans and veteran charities. Most people are willing to make donations. And home-made baked goods make any event special.

Create an Honor Wall

An honor wall is a list of names of veterans, but rather than put them there yourself, make it so that all attendees can set things up. Use notes or cards and encourage people to post personal messages of gratitude or connection. Make sure that children can reach to participate. You may want to provide crayons as well as markers for the younger children.

Once completed, photograph your Honor Wall for posterity and post to social media as part of the event recap.

Another alternative if your venue supports it is to encourage patriotic and pro-veteran chalk art.

Have an Open Mic

Instead of, or in addition to, formal speakers you can set up an open mic where attendees can read poetry, express gratitude, or tell short stories. Veterans and their families should get priority, but anyone should be able to stand up and read a poem from a book or their own imagination that reflects the experiences and sacrifices of veterans.

Throw a Parade

You don’t need a lot of space to do a veterans day parade. A parking lot will do! Invite local veterans as well as active-duty service members on leave and the families of veterans to parade. For extra cuteness, include their dogs. (If you do, make sure to have some treats for the fuzzy friends too). Kids will enjoy taking part too. It doesn’t have to be a grand affair to be enjoyable for everyone.

Use Experienced Event Planners

Overwhelmed? An experienced event planner can help. We can make this work and work with you on how to make your ideas even better. An event planner can help you find speakers, choose local veteran-owned businesses to purchase from, and keep everything working smoothly. You, your hosted veterans and your attendees can experience unreasonable hospitality!

At Successful Events, we care about our Houston, TX veterans, and we can handle events of any size. Whether it’s a small company affair to honor your own employee veterans, or something larger and intended for an entire community.

We can transform your office or warehouse into the perfect space for a veterans’ day event with flags, bunting, and appropriate decoration. Successful Events organizes catering, themed decorations, and facilitate entertainment. Yes, we can help you find speakers or get the equipment together for an open mic. We can help with appropriately patriotic background music too.

Prepare To Feel Like A Guest At Your Own Event

And not just because you’ve made veterans the center. We take the heavy lifting of event planning off your shoulders. Once hired, all you need to do is sit back and enjoy it.

Every event plan starts with a free consultation to help you refine your vision. Then we manage all the details, supporting the theme, and handle all the vendors and suppliers. And yes, we will prioritize veterans if you want.
If all goes well, you won’t even notice us. You can relax and enjoy your day while we take care of everything both before, during, and after your event. Let us handle everything.

If you are planning a veterans day event, contact Successful Events today. We are your Houston, TX event planners who can help you thank the veterans in your community…as well as making sure everyone has fun!