2026 Phoenix Veterans Day Parade features 100-year-old WWII veteran grand marshal

The 30th annual Phoenix Veterans Day Parade features a new route and standout grand marshals, including a West Valley man who entered service on D-Day.

The parade, which is presented by local nonprofit Honoring America’s Veterans, starts at 11 a.m. Wednesday on Third Street at McDowell Road and travels north to Indian School Road. This is a change from previous years, when the route included Central Avenue, Camelback Road and Seventh Street.

The Phoenix Veterans Day Parade will feature 100-year-old grand marshal Delmar DeWitt Beard of Glendale, who was sworn into the Navy on D-Day — the historic World War II attack on June 6, 1944, when allied forces stormed the beaches of Nazi-occupied France.

DeWitt recalled a stark memory of watching a Marine get killed in front him during his service.

“And what’d we do? Pulled him on the beach, hollered ‘medic’ and went back to work,” he said.

DeWitt emphasized he’s thankful for his military family of 82 years, noting that this Veterans Day parade might be the last he attends.

Super Bowl champion is celebrity grand marshal for Phoenix Veterans Day Parade

This week’s event will also feature two-time Super Bowl champion quarterback Jim McMahon as celebrity grand marshal.

McMahon, who started for the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX and was a backup for the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XXXI, said he was  honored to join veterans like DeWitt for the parade.

“Freedom is not free. These guys have paid with their lives, their limbs. Their families supported them over the years. To me, it’s very simple to come out here and honor what they’ve done for us,” McMahon said.

Other grand marshals for this year’s parade include:

• U.S. Navy and Korean War veteran Melvin Mitchell of Mesa
• U.S. Army and Vietnam War veteran Charles “Chuck” Byers of Gilbert
• U.S. Army and Cold War veteran Palmer R. Miller III of Casa Grande
• U.S. Marine Corps and Operation Desert Storm veteran Joe Worthy of Phoenix
• U.S. Navy and post-9/11 era veteran Priscilla Velazquez of Buckeye
• U.S. Marine Corps and Operation Enduring Freedom veteran Steve Langen of Chandler

The 2026 Phoenix Veterans Day parade will also recognize the 250th birthday of the United States.

Phoenix isn’t the only local city hosting a Veterans Day parade. The East Valley Veterans Day Parade in Mesa and the Tempe Veterans Day Parade are also taking place Wednesday.

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