NYC Veterans Day Parade 2024: Marching bands, military units and more will march up Fifth Avenue | Watch live

NEW YORK CITY (WABC) – To honor and celebrate our country’s heroes, WABC-TV is proud to broadcast the largest Veterans Day event in the United States, the annual New York City Veterans Day Parade.

WABC-TV anchor David Novarro and ABC News’ Stephanie Ramos will host alongside WABC-TV reporter Lucy Yang along the parade route on Fifth Avenue. The 105th parade begins on Monday, November 11th at 12:30 p.m. and continues until 3:00 p.m. Watch as the city transforms into a sea of ​​red, white and blue to commemorate all eras and branches of service.

The parade will feature marching bands, military units, veterans organizations and more, all coming together to honor those who sacrificed for our freedom.

You can watch the parade on ABC 7 starting at 12:30 p.m

Spectators can view the parade in person on Fifth Avenue between 26th Street and 47th Street.

Dakota Meyer, Medal of Honor recipient and United States Marine, as grand marshal for the 2024 parade.

A veteran of both Iraq and Afghanistan, Meyer received our nation’s highest medal for bravery for his actions on September 8, 2009 in the village of Ganjgal, Kunar Province, Afghanistan. At the time, Meyer was a 21-year-old noncommissioned officer helping to train and supervise Afghan Army troops. When he received word that heavily armed Taliban fighters had pinned down a force of Afghan and American troops, Meyer defied orders and drove to the “kill zone” to help.

On five consecutive missions within six hours, Meyer helped save the lives of dozens of American and Afghan troops by switching vehicles when his first was too badly damaged by enemy fire to continue. He also found the bodies of four missing men from his unit and, with the help of Afghan allied soldiers, transferred them to a safer area from which they could be recovered. Meyer suffered shrapnel wounds to his arm and did not expect to survive the battle – a testament to his heroism. “I didn’t really think I might die, it was just a matter of when,” he later recalled. “I never thought I would ever come out… (but) that’s what Marines do.”

Cpt. Mercedes Elias and John Escalante will serve as honorary marshals at this year’s event.

Elias served nine years on active duty in the Marine Corps and was stationed throughout the United States and abroad. Prior to her time in the Marines, Elias was a business executive and veteran advocate, including serving as the first female CEO of a Wall Street broker-dealer. She is also currently a member of the New York City Veterans Advisory Board.

Escalante served for over 30 years with multiple deployments in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) and Operation Iraqi Freedom. He continued to be an integral part of New York’s veteran/military community prior to his retirement as a Master Gunnery Sergeant in 2023.

The New York City Veterans Day Parade is the nation’s largest honoring event.

WABC is a proud community partner of the parade, which will take place rain or shine on Monday, November 11th.

Information from the United War Veterans Council.

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