MARIETTA — On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month and, this time, the 11th year, Marietta groups will begin to celebrate Veterans Day.

Friday’s events include the seventh annual Kiwanis Club parade, followed by a ceremony in Marietta Square. Roswell Street Baptist Church will also have a luncheon, which is already sold out with more than 200 guests.

The parade starts at 11 a.m. at Roswell Street Baptist Church, 774 Roswell St., and then proceeds to the Square. Parade director Scott Chadwick said the event will include 26 entries with more than 1,000 participants.

Among those marching will be Marietta High School’s band, as well as bands from Lassiter, Kell and Pope high schools, Chadwick said. Several Veterans of Foreign Wars and American Legion posts will be represented, along with Junior ROTC students from local schools.

While some cites have Veterans Day festivities on weekends, Chadwick said it’s important to have the parade on Nov. 11 in remembrance of the end of World War I, even though it means some people won’t be able to attend because they have to work.

“We are purists. We have always done it on the 11th,” he said. “If it falls on a weekday, there are very few people participating. There may be four or five dozen people along the entire route.”

A ceremony is scheduled to start at noon in Glover Park. It will feature keynote speaker and parade grand marshal Michael Bowers, a former Georgia attorney general and adjutant general. Speakers will also include Cobb Board of Commissioners Chairman Tim Lee and Marietta Mayor Steve Tumlin.

The event will also include a three-volley salute, followed by a performance of taps.

Back at Roswell Street Baptist Church, attendees will hear from James E. Sehorn, who spent more than five years as a prisoner of war after his plane was shot down over North Vietnam.

“It’s a miracle that he even survived it,” said Dr. Ernest Easley, the church’s senior pastor.

While the church’s past Veterans Day luncheons have focused on World War II veterans, Easley said Friday’s presentation will highlight those who served in Vietnam.

“It’s just a way of saying to our veterans, ‘we love you, and we appreciate all you have done in service to our country,” Easley said.

The church luncheon is scheduled to start at 11 a.m.