NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Ahead of Veterans Day, more than 50 local veterans and their families gathered at the Freight Yard Pub for a free appreciation brunch hosted by veteran advocate Wayne "Wayno" Soares.

 

"I am honored to be able to do this, and it is a privilege," Soares said Thursday. "And you can see we have a great turnout and everyone is having fun."

 

Soares organizes a multitude of fundraisers to support veterans that include golf tournaments, auctions, and comedy shows, among other things. 

 

Soares, who resides in the area, cited the region's strong veteran presence and active community support as his primary motivation for hosting locally. A longtime advocate for veterans, Soares also writes a biweekly column called "Veteran Spotlight" and has produced shows and documentaries to bring recognition to those who served.

 

"You serve two years, you serve 20 years," Soares said. "If you served our country at any point, we want to show our appreciation."

 

Berkshire County Sheriff Thomas Bowler was in attendance and echoed Soares' statement.

 

"These are individuals who sacrificed, and they need to be recognized," Bowler said. "At the jail … we have stones of marble from the [World] Trade Center, and we have a saying out in front of the jail. The last two words of the quote are 'never forget,' and it is the same thing here. We never want to forget what these individuals sacrificed for our country for our liberties and our freedoms."

 

Beyond the recognition, Soares does not want veterans to go without.

 

"One of the things that really upsets me in this country is we have homeless veterans," he said. "So we try to help out as many as we can. A lot of these guys might only have one meal a day, so anything we can do to just show our appreciation is big."

 

Soares also raises funds to donate meals-on-the-go and to power a wheelchair/walker program. He also runs a clothing drive he is preparing to roll out around Christmas.

 

Not only is it important to recognize and support veterans, Soares wants to get them all together.

 

"These guys, they get a chance to come together, and they probably normally wouldn't talk to a civilian, but they talk amongst themselves," Soares said. "This is very good therapy for our Vietnam Veterans, our combat veterans, they can talk a little bit more."

 

During the brunch, the trailer for the second episode of his Vietnam documentary series, "Silent Dignity," was played. Soares hoped it would spark more conversation among attendees. The series features Vietnam veterans and their spouses sharing their personal stories about how the war affected their families, with many speaking about their experiences for the first time in decades.

 

Personally, Soares said just moving from table to table and conversing with new friends and old is nourishing.

 

"I absolutely love it," Soares said. "They come up to me and say thank you, and I say no, this is about you."

 

Soares thanked Freight Yard Pub for making the space available and hopes that it can become an annual event.