Veterans from Middleton, Bolivar and every corner of the county are invited to the annual Hardeman County Veterans Day program, set for Friday, Nov. 13, at 10 a.m. at the Bolivar Municipal Center. The program is free and open to the public, and it will include a guest speaker and a meal.
Organizers are asking residents to help spread the word. If you are a veteran, or you know one, they want you there, according to The Magnolia Post.
Hardeman County Veterans Day program details
When: Friday, Nov. 13, 2026, at 10 a.m.
Where: Bolivar Municipal Center, 211 North Washington Street, Bolivar, TN 38008
Who: All military veterans from Hardeman County or with ties to the county, plus their families and the public
Cost: Free
Includes: A guest speaker and a served meal
The speaker’s name had not been announced as of Tuesday. Tippah News will update this story if more details are released.
A family tradition of honoring local veterans
The yearly program was started by Frances Ward to recognize and honor all veterans from and with ties to Hardeman County. After Ward died in January 2019, her daughter, Vicki Ridenhour, took up the work and has kept the event going so that local veterans are not forgotten.
Programs like this one are a big part of how small towns in West Tennessee and North Mississippi mark Veterans Day. They give veterans a chance to be thanked in person by their neighbors, to share a meal and to reconnect with others who served.
Close to home for Middleton and Walnut families
The program is in Bolivar, the Hardeman County seat, a short drive from Middleton and from Walnut and the rest of northern Tippah County. Many families in our coverage area have relatives on both sides of the state line, and organizers say anyone with ties to Hardeman County is welcome.
Because the program is held two days after Veterans Day, it is also a good option for veterans who have other events or family plans on Wednesday, Nov. 11.
More Veterans Day events in the area
Veterans looking for more ways to mark the holiday can also sign up for the free Veterans Day bus tour at Shiloh National Military Park on Wednesday, Nov. 11, from noon to 4 p.m. That tour is open to veterans, active-duty service members and their spouses, and registration is required by calling the park at 731-689-5696.
Veterans Day began as Armistice Day, marking the end of fighting in World War I on Nov. 11, 1918. It honors everyone who has served in the U.S. armed forces, living or gone.
Know a veteran who would enjoy the Hardeman County program? Share this post and help make sure they hear about it.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
