At the end of the workweek of the annual "Week of Valor," the city invited its employees who are veterans of military service to gather for lunch at Hemming Plaza.
Harrison Conyers, city veterans and community outreach manager, said more than 600 employees declared on their applications that are veterans, but the actual number is quite higher.
"There are probably nearly 2,000 veterans out of the city's 9,000 employees," he said.
Friday marked the first time the city has recognized its veterans with lunch in the plaza. It won't be the last, according to Mayor Alvin Brown.
"We are going to do this every year," he said.
City Council member Reggie Brown is a warrant officer in the U.S. Army Reserve. He said Veterans Day is a time to remember the sacrifices made by men and women in the armed forces.
"We all need to be reminded that freedom is not free. A few of us will carry the weight of many. Value what you have and cherish it," he said.
The city will be able to expand its services to veterans after the Jacksonville Jaguars Foundation awards a $1 million grant to the Military Affairs, Veterans and Disabled Services Department, Conyers said.
He said the grant will augment public funding and support programs for veterans in transition from military to civilian life and to improve the department's facilities at City Hall. A new program to provide grants to local veterans' services organizations also will be launched.
"The city can't – and shouldn't – do it all," Conyers said.
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