MARIETTA - As the world changes, so does our image of the veteran as an old timer, said Maj. Gen. William T. Nesbitt, adjutant general of Georgia. Nesbitt was the keynote speaker at the fifth annual Veterans Day ceremony in Marietta.

"As a result, the veteran might have easily been born in the 1980s and today, even the 1990s," Nesbitt said. "Today's veteran also includes the 27-year-old mother, freshly finished with her military obligation and ready to start her civilian career. The results of this change also is a seasoned veteran of age 26. The result of this change is a 29-year-old amputee with a family and bright future. The result of the change is a core of veterans who don't bring to mind the days of Kason, 38th Parallel, DMZ or even the USSR and Berlin."

Nesbitt said veterans of today have been tested well beyond their years and are strong. Approximately 770,000 Georgia residents are among the 23.4 million veterans nationwide, he said.

"As we honor veterans of the past, let us also honor the great sacrifices of our current veterans," Nesbitt said. "Many volunteered in the hours after 9/11. Many were already proudly serving in branches of service."

In addition, Nesbitt served as grand marshal in Wednesday's Veterans Day Parade that started at Roswell Street Baptist Church and proceeded to Marietta Square, where the ceremony was conducted. The Marietta Kiwanis Club and city of Marietta sponsored the parade.

Outgoing Marietta Mayor Bill Dunaway called it the best Veterans Day ceremony the city has had.

"I don't know what it's like to have sacrificed in service, but I do know that I am the recipient of your service," Dunaway told the crowd, which included a number of veterans. "The city is a recipient of your service in the past, present and will be in the future."

The ceremony included remarks by Cobb Commission Chairman Sam Olens, former NAS-Atlanta commander Navy Capt. Charles Mingonet, Marietta Kiwanis Club President Victoria Turney and veteran Scott Chadwick, the master of ceremonies.

It also featured a flag folding ceremony by the 94th Air Wing Honor Guard, a 21-gun salute and the solemn playing of "Taps" by Cobb Sheriff's Office deputies. The Marietta High School Honor Guard participated, as well as Martha's Finest barbershop quartet from Berry College in Rome, who sang the National Anthem.

The 8th Wing Canadian Air Force Detachment - attending C-130 training at Lockheed Martin - was present for the ceremony. They are led by Canadian Air Force Maj. Allan MacKenzie.

After the parade and ceremony, Korean War veteran Bill Secreast, 74, of northeast Cobb, said Veterans Day holds a very special meaning to him. He joined the Navy at age 17 in 1952 and was discharged at age 21 in 1955.

"I salute anyone who's in today or goes in today, as much as those, I'd almost go as far to say, that were killed in action," Secreast said. "Because the young man going in today may never go overseas, but he's susceptible to being sent anywhere in the world tomorrow. So I think he or she should be honored as much so as the veterans who served overseas."

For a Vietnam War veteran like retired Marine Sgt. Eddie Cranford, 61, of Marietta, the ceremony was an opportunity to see fellow veterans of his generation honored.

"I noticed a lot more veterans of my age group are coming out to these things because we really didn't get the recognition that we should have gotten when we came back from Vietnam," said Cranford, who was awarded the Purple Heart.

The fact that this year's Veterans Day came two days after the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall was an added bonus for retired Navy Cmdr. Bill Sidner of east Cobb. Serving from 1960 to 1993, Sidner has vivid memories of the Cold War and the fall of the wall.

"I watched it intently when it happened and it was really something to see it commemorated the other night," he said. "It was like a huge change throughout the world was coming with that, and has proven to be so."