LEXINGTON, N.C. — 94-year-old veteran Albert Gobble is the grand marshal of Lexington’s Veterans Day Parade. It’s a title he respects.

“Well, I don’t excite too easily,” Gobble said. “But it’s an honor. I know it is.”

It’s tough to get excited when your military career has taken you from the farmlands of Davidson County to bases on the other side of the world. Gobble was 19 when he was drafted into the United States Army Air Forces, which would later become the United States Air Force. He trained as a radar technician. But you can say he was drafted again when he had to drive from France to Germany.

“He said, ‘The rest of you hold up your hands. As of this minute all of you have a military driver’s license,'” recalled Gobble with a chuckle.

His room at the retirement center is filled with pictures from his service in World War II and Korea. The black-and-white images illustrate Gobble’s life story. It’s a story a lot of vets from his generation share. Unfortunately, Gobble feels people are now forgetting what happened over 70 years ago.

“That’s something I’m not happy with,” Gobble said.

He wants people to remember. He’s hoping his role as grand marshal of the Lexington Veterans Day Parade will encourage people to learn about the past and respect veterans. Gobble’s close friend and veteran, Dallas Newsome, is hoping people will embrace the true meaning of Veterans Day.

“We should look at all of the veterans, ” Newsome said. “I don’t care which war. We need to look at the veterans and give them what they deserve.”