A sampling of Twin Cities metro Veterans Day events

Apple Valley: 9 a.m., Apple Valley High School, 14450 Hayes Rd.

Bloomington: 11 a.m., new Veterans Support Center will open on the campus of Northwestern Health Sciences University, 2501 W. 84th St. In response to requests by student veterans, Northwestern has created the center inside its main building in a space overlooking a park and a lake. Vets can go there to study, get help with educational and job planning or talk with other veterans. Built with the help of a grant from the Home Depot Foundation.

Golden Valley: 1 p.m., Covenant Village of Golden Valley, 5800 St. Croix Av. N. Featuring fife and drum music from historic Fort Snelling.

Hastings: 2 p.m., Minnesota Veterans Home, Hastings, 1200 E. 18th St. VFW State Cmdr. Duane Hermanson will speak.

Inver Grove Heights: 10 a.m., official State of Minnesota Veterans Day Program, Veterans Memorial Community Center in Inver Grove Heights. Speakers will include state Department of Veterans Affairs Commissioner Larry Shellito, Brig. Gen. Jon Jensen of the Minnesota National Guard, Sen. Amy Klobuchar and WCCO anchor Frank Vascellaro. WCCO will have the More Than Names Flag on display recognizing support for military members and their families. Also new this year, two fifth-grade students from Inver Grove Heights will read winning essays. A free community breakfast will be held from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.

Long Lake: 4:30 p.m., Nelson Lakeside Park, sponsored by Rotary Club of Orono.

Minneapolis: 2:30 p.m., Minneapolis VA Health Care System, 1 Veterans Drive. Featuring Maj. Gen. George Steiner (retired) and the 451st U.S. Army Band.

Minneapolis: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Hats for the Homeless knitting event with a focus on homeless veterans, 3448 Chicago Av. S. Barb Melom and her organization Hats for the Homeless are partnering with the StevenBe Creative Community Foundation for their fourth annual charity hat event. Knitters, crocheters, and loom knitters are welcome. Monica Nilsson from St. Stephen's Human Services will talk about the 300 homeless vets currently in Hennepin County.

Minneapolis: Looking for a quiet, uncrowded, reflective moment on Veterans Day? Visit one of Minneapolis' dedicated veterans' memorial parks. Each features a monument and plaques dedicated to fallen soldiers. The first is Victory Memorial Parkway, which runs from Theodore Wirth Parkway to 45th Avenue N., then east to Lyndale Avenue N., and honors the fallen from World War I. The second is Sheridan Memorial Park, 1300 Water St. NE., which commemorates all veterans from Minnesota and emphasizes the cost of war and importance of peace.

Richfield: 9 a.m., Richfield STEM School, 7020 12th Av. S. Speakers will include U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Lt. Gov. Tina Smith.

St. Paul: 11 a.m., ceremony held by Special Forces Association, Chapter 20. Vietnam War Memorial on the State Capitol grounds. Featuring speaker Doug Bekke and the St. Paul Central High School Band. The day will begin with posting of the National Colors at 7 a.m. at the Vietnam War Memorial with breakfast to follow at the Kelly Inn, just west of the Capitol grounds.

St. Paul: Minneapolis-St. Paul Veterans for Peace program, 10:30 a.m., Landmark Center auditorium, 75 W. 5th St., co-sponsored by Landmark Center and Minnesota Alliance of Peacemakers. Music, reading and film clips, and at 11 a.m., bells hand-cast by 11 veterans under the guidance of sculptor Gita Ghei will ring. Speakers will include Greg Boertje-Obed and Michele Naar-Obed, a couple from Duluth. Greg is a member of the Duluth/Superior Chapter of Veterans for Peace and former U.S. Army lieutenant. Michele has worked with Christian Peacemaker teams in Baghdad and the Kurdish north of Iraq. Currently, she is working to build a library in the Kurdish city of Kobani, Syria.

Wabasha: Noon, flag-raising ceremony and reception at the National Eagle Center, 50 Pembroke Av. The Wabasha American Legion and VFW Post color guards will raise the colors. Complimentary admission (through Sunday) for all veterans and active duty servicepeople.

Wayzata: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Veterans Day Plant a Flag for Freedom event, Heritage Park, Central Avenue and Wayzata Boulevard. Sponsored by Lake Minnetonka Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, this event allows families to honor their vets and plant a flag as a show of appreciation. A social hour will follow.

White Bear Lake: Ecumenical services at 6:15 p.m. St. John in the Wilderness Episcopal Church, 2175 1st St.

Winona: 11 a.m., Veterans Memorial Park, Lake Park Drive. Civil War re-enactors will take the stage, followed by speakers and prayers.