FORT EUSTIS, Va. –
Amid the sweltering summer heat at noon, a chorus of colors waved gracefully in the breeze. Cannon volleys tore through the serene air as Ft. Eustis celebrated the Independence Day at Seay Plaza, honoring the nation and its fifty states in a ceremonial cannon firing, July 4.
U.S. Army regulations mandate each Army installation will perform a ceremony annually on July 4 in honor of Independence Day. This year, Soldiers from the 7th Sustainment Brigade Salute Battery fired 50 rounds from three 35-millimeter cannons, one shot for each state in the union. As the rounds were fired, a narrator announced the name and date of accession of each state.
Additionally, advanced individual training Soldiers from the 128th Aviation Bde. carried the colors of each state in parade during the ceremony.
U.S. Army Col. Reggie Austin, the 633rd Air Base Wing vice commander, asked those in attendance to not only be thankful for the nation's independence, but to remember the men and women who put their lives in jeopardy to maintain that freedom.
"As we recognize and celebrate the birth of nation, let us give thanks to the vision of our founding fathers, and give thanks to all those who serve our country," Austin said. "All our citizens should reflect on the debt owed to those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice.
"All Americans join me in gratitude to everything you do to keep us safe," he said to the Soldiers in attendance. "Wherever and however you serve, you're an inspiration to me and my fellow Americans."
Austin said Americans should "recommit themselves to doing all we can, so our children, grandchildren and all the generations that follow can be born with the freedoms that are birthrights of Americans."
The U.S. celebrated its 236th birthday this year, commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence, which announced the thirteen American colonies as independent states free from British rule.