Locals gathered at the county courthouse Monday morning to honor veterans at a Veterans Day service.

The service was headlined with a speech by Sgt. 1st Class Clayton Riley. In his speech, Riley spoke about his own experiences serving in the National Guard, serving overseas in Afghanistan and his pride in protecting his country. Riley’s speech was followed by a 21-gun salute to honor American veterans and those who had fallen in battle.

Retired Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael Emmer organized the service because he said he believes veterans deserve recognition and to be honored for their service.

“A lot of veterans are very modest about what they did do, and they don’t realize quite how much what they have done has meant to everybody around them. Sometimes it’s just nice for them to know that,” Emmer said.

After speaking with the National Guard Public Affairs, Emmer knew Riley was the perfect person to speak at the event.

“I think he was a great addition to the Veterans Day service,” Emmer said. “He is a currently serving member of our community in Sycamore, and there is no finer example of what a citizen soldier actually is than Sgt. Riley.”

Riley said he felt honored to be invited to speak at the Veterans Day service; however, he saw his speech not as an opportunity for personal recognition, but an act that could honor fellow soldiers and veterans.

“It was a chance to pay my respects to those who served before me and those that I currently serve with,” Riley said.

Steven Kreitzer, an Iraq veteran and Commander of Sycamore’s Veterans of Foreign Wars, agreed that Veterans Day is all about honoring veterans.

“As Sgt. Riley said, the veterans are the foundation of what America is,” Kreitzer said. “Without them we wouldn’t have the freedoms that we enjoy today.”

Another veteran present at the service was Joseph Bussone, a WWII Navy veteran and the long-time organizer of the service. Although this was the first year he was unable to organize the event due to his health, Bussone was still enthusiastic about celebrating Veterans Day.

“The importance of Veterans Day is to honor all veterans that have served our great country through all of the years. All Americans should be proud of their veterans and that’s what Veterans Day is all about,” Bussone said. “It’s always great to have someone I don’t know shake my hand and say thank you for your service.”

Veterans Day is about thanking our veterans for what they have done for our country, and the veterans are also thankful for what the community has done to support them, Kreitzer said.

“DeKalb County in general is an amazing community, and I think they do a lot for the local veterans, and we appreciate that,” Kreitzer said.