WATCH: Squadron Flyover Caps July 4th Ceremony In Normandy Beach

The sounds of bagpipes and drums filled the air, sounding out the anthems of the U.S. Marine Corps, the Army, the Navy and the Air Force. A U.S. flag waved in the breeze high above the crowd from the top of the Ocean Beach Fire Company’s ladder truck, as veterans -- from World War II to Afghanistan -- stood at attention, surrounded by dozens of spectators old and young.

The Normandy Beach Improvement Association’s 28th annual July Fourth Flag Raising and Veterans Appreciation Celebration filled 6th Avenue with red, white and blue-clad adults and children, who came to honor the about 50 veterans present.

The event was the brainchild of Bob Mrozek and a few friends, but several people said it is Mrozek who’s the driving force behind it now, and whose efforts have led to its growth.

“It’s a great celebration of the men and women who served, who followed ordered even if they didn’t agree with them,” said Larry Reid of Brick, who served in the Army Reserves from 1969-75.

“It used to be 50 people” attending the event, said Reid, who has participated since its inception. “Bob does a great job putting it all together.”

“It takes a lot of coordination to put all this together,” said Toms River Mayor Tom Kelaher, who was participating in the event for the first time. Kelaher, who served in the U.S. Marines, said he was impressed by the large crowd that turned out and all the pomp and circumstance. ”It’s fantastic,” he said.

Philip Sapio of Jackson, who served in the Marines from 1999-2007, said he appreciates the sense of dignity that goes with wearing his uniform for the event, which he has participated in for three years.

“It’s a coalition of all branches and all generations, for one common purpose,” Sapio said, “we all fought for that flag.”

The ceremonies included the singing of the national anthem by 11-year-old Lindsey Rawding of Verona, whose grandmother lives in Normandy Beach, and the music of the Shamrock and Thistle Pipes and Drums, in addition to the flag-raising. And the event was capped by a flyover by the Ocean Air Support Squadron air wing of the Ocean County Sheriff’s Department.

“This is reminder of the 58,000 who never came home,” said Jimmy Regan, a Navy veteran who served in Vietnam for 15 months. Regan, who owns Harbour Yacht Club and Marina. Though the number of World War II veterans is dwindling, there are more veterans participating. This year, Regan said, the event included one of his former employees, who became a Navy SEAL. “I was particularly proud of that,” he said.

“(The ceremony) is a realization that people really do appreciate that we risked our lives for their freedom,” said Albert Rawding of Verona, who served with the Marines in Desert Storm, and who has participated for several years. “Every year it just sinks in deeper and deeper,” he said.

Watch the flyover by the Ocean Air Support Squadron below.

(Photo credits: Blaine Darnall, Ocean Air Support Squadron with the U.S. flag; Bob Mrozek handing the flag to a spectator, and Mrozek leading the veterans marching in. Gen Van Doren, Lindsey Rawding performing the Star-Spangled Banner; the Shamrock & Thistle Pipes and Drums marching in; Deni Rawding decked out for the holiday. All others by Karen Wall)