Local U.S. submarine veterans take float to Veterans Day parade for 13th year

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) - On Veterans Day the VFW hosts a parade in downtown Rapid City. One of the floats has been in the parade since 2009 and honors the submariners.

Both Don Hix and Jim Copeland are submarine veterans. The two have been taking the submarine to parades in the Black Hills area for thirteen years, with a group of other veterans. The group of U.S submarine veterans formed to honor the ‘Thresher’ submarine that sunk in 1963. The two veterans agreed the loss was devastating; now the submariners are a close-knit group.

“We are a very close group now and always have been. And I see another submariner, he’s like a brother to me and we talk to together just like we’ve known each other our entire lives,” said Copeland.

The submarine has been taken to several other events in Wyoming, Montana, and Minnesota