Arcadia Senior Living honors 20 veteran residents on Veterans Day

BOWLING GREEN, Ky.- Arcadia Senior Living celebrated Veterans Day by showing appreciation for everyone who has served. 

The facility made the day extra special for their residents who are veterans. 

“Our Veteran’s Day activities are always so special to them because it is a time to reflect on their experiences in the service and to remember the true sacrifices they made and courage they had to serve our country,” said community relations director Paige Hughes. 

Twenty veterans proudly call Arcadia their home. 

“One of those is our maintenance man, Mike Nerland who served in the Navy. Our oldest Veteran, Joe Coleman, is 99 years old, and our longest serving Veteran is Col. Byron Watkins who served in the Army for 30 years,” said Hughes. 

The staff had a special luncheon with Donato’s pizza and wings, followed by an afternoon reception honoring those who served the country. 

“We are taking this time to honor Arcadia’s own veterans and to say thank you and show appreciation for the sacrifices they made for our freedom. During the Veterans Day Reception we recognized each one of our veterans with a certificate and American Flag pin,” said Hughes.

Hughes says the day is overall heartwarming seeing the veterans come together to share stories and experiences. 

On Arcadia’s Facebook page here, they encourage people to post a picture of a special veteran in their life with information about what branch they served, how many years they served, and more. They will be sharing the posts with their residents this week. 

Together they have a total of 197 years of service in the building. 

• W.L. McClure – Navy (4 years)
• Bob Bueker – Navy (5 years)
• Steve Peck – Army (20 years)
• Elmer Cain – Army (2 years)
• John Price – Army (2 years)
• Ed Clancy – Navy (22 years)
• Ed Rampenthal – Marine Corp (23 years)
• Joe Coleman – Coast Guard (4 years)
• Wayne Smith – Army (4 years)
• Dewey Hornbeck – Army (3 years)
• Guy Geiger – Navy (2 years)
• Gerald Kirkland – Air Force (5 years)
• John LeVasseur – Air Force (7 years)
• Colonel Byron Watkins – Army (30 years)
• James Seng – Air Force (4 years)
• Travis Strickland – Air Force (27 years)
• Dan Riley – Army (4 years)
• Mark Lowery – Army (4 years)
• Dawson Motsinger – Army (2 years)
• Mike Nerland – Navy (22 years)