IMAGE GALLERY: Iraq War Vets, Families Loved Parade

When the “Welcome Home” Iraq War Veterans Parade organizers were trying to make up their minds on when to hold the state’s first-ever such tribute, it was difficult because they were worried about what type of turnout it would receive.

Instead of holding it on Memorial Day Weekend, Josh Denton of Portsmouth, the parade steering committee’s president, said they chose Sunday, July 8.

When a dozen , they were greeted by hundreds of Portsmouth area residents who included family members of the service members from both conflicts.

They cheered and applauded Iraq War veterans like Jonathan Gould of Rochester, an Army Specialist 4 who served from 2011- to 2012 and Chris Peirce, the commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1088 in Kingston, who served in the NH Army National Guard with the 172nd Field Artillery Company from 2004- to 2005.

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The crowd waved small American flags and said, “Thank you,” over and over again to the war veterans as much as they could.

Having a good parade turnout was not an issue after all. As the parade organizers found out, all they had to do was ask people to support the troops and they complied the same way they have since the nation’s War on Terror began after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

“We’re all here for the same reason because we support the troops,” said Denton following the parade. Denton served as an Army advisor to an 800-member Iraqi Army Battalion during his tour in 2006.

He promised that when the final troops come home from Afghanistan in 2014, “We will meet again, march again and greet them with the same fanfare we had here today.”

Denton assured the Gold Star families from New Hampshire that lost loved ones in both wars “that their loved ones will never be forgotten.”

Denton also urged businesses to hire returning Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans. He said the unemployment rate for those veterans nationwide is 13 percent. As part of Sunday’s parade, a job fair was set up in the lower parking lot of the city’s municipal complex with representatives from the U.S. Department of Veterans Administration and NH Department of Employment Security.

“Today is our day. Every day is our day,” Denton said. “Be well, do good and welcome home.”

Gov. John Lynch, who marched as a co-grand marshal with some of the state’s Gold Star families, said the state’s 1.3 million people thank the Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans and their families for the sacrifices they made.

“Just as you were there for us, let’s today re-commit ourselves to making sure we are always there for you,” Lynch said.

Besides Lynch, several Democratic congressional, gubernatorial, state Senate and NH House candidates marched in the parade as part of a large Portsmouth Democratic Committee contingent. Carol-Shea Porter, Maggie Hassan, Jackie Cilley, House Minority Leader Terie Norelli, D-Portsmouth, and Martha Fuller Clark all demonstrated their support for the returning war veterans.

Peirce said he really appreciated seeing so many people come out for the parade to thank veterans like himself for their service. He said getting that type of appreciation makes it easier for veterans to readjust to society and move on with their lives once they leave the service.

“When you don’t get the thanks or the appreciation, people become bitter and they pass that on,” said Peirce, whose son, Ryan, an Air Force member, just returned from a tour in Qatar in 2011.

Peirce said that when veterans come home, they “need some breathing space.” He said it does take some time for them to readjust to civilian life and family life.

Peirce believes events like Sunday’s parade can make a positive difference.

Jessica Chambers of Rochester said Sunday’s parade was very important to her and her family. Her boyfriend, Jonathan Gould of Rochester, marched with the other Iraq War veterans.

“I think it’s very special. He’s lost a lot of friends over there and we are getting a lot of knowledge about what he’s been going through. It’s very important to him and to me,” she said.