Times Observer photo by Brian Ferry Enjoying the food and the camaraderie of the fourth annual 4 Paws 4 Veterans Day Dinner (from left) are: Marina Steinhauser, Dave Steinhauser (Air Force), Bill Johnson (Army), Parker Lang (Air Force), Kathy Lang, Marilyn Johnson, and Scott Barber Sr. (Navy). Not pictured at the table are Marsha Taylor, Buck Taylor, and Priscilla Barber.

On the 100th anniversary of the end of the War to End All Wars, veterans from all over Warren County celebrated Veterans Day with dinner at the Eagles Club.

The fourth annual 4 Paws 4 Veterans Dinner, sponsored by New Hope Assistance Dogs and Warren Eagles Club FOE #313, welcomed Warren County veterans and their family members for food and fellowship.

Veterans were seated with their families, with other veterans, and with other families.

At one table, Scott Barber Sr. (Navy), Bill Johnson (Army), Dave Steinhauser (Air Force), and Parker Lang (Air Force) shared stories.

“It’s a great thing,” Barber said.

“It’s fantastic,” Steinhauser said of the event. “There are so many veterans that did not get the recognition they deserve. People now are finally turning it around.”

“What people are doing now for the military and especially the veterans is just fantastic,” he said. “So many business establishments are recognizing the military at their own expense.”

He said the country’s all-volunteer military benefits from the recognition of veterans like at 4 Paws Dinner. “This is going to help enlistment,” he said.

That might be a benefit, but that’s not the goal of the event.

“We do it because we work with veterans every day and they should be recognized for what they’ve given,” Tammy Rogers of New Hope said. “This allows them to spend time with the family where they’re all getting the meal. They get to see people they don’t normally see.”

“It brings them together for one special event,” Rogers said. “We’ve had a lot of repeats.”

Veterans and volunteers alike were already asking her about plans for next year, she said.

State Rep. Kathy Rapp attended the event for the fourth time, presenting a flag flown over the capitol.

Rogers thanked all the veterans, Rapp, the volunteers, the club, and all the agencies and businesses that contributed to the event.

The Civil Air Patrol presented the Missing Man Table, honoring fallen, missing, and imprisoned comrades.

There were about 400 meals served through the five hours of the event, many in the club, some take-out, and others, for veterans who are unable to get out to the event, delivered.

Veterans who attended were offered free one-year memberships to the club.

Remaining meals will be donated to the St. Joseph Soup Kitchen.

“We’ve had veterans from World War II to Iraq and all eras in between,” Warren County Veterans Affairs Director Ed Burris said. “The consensus is, everybody is really appreciative of the meal.”