American Legion to attend Tattoo festival

The 23rd annual Virginia International Tattoo – a world-class event in Norfolk that that draws in more than 45,000 people to honor America’s military, patriotism and freedom through music, marching, pageantry, panel discussions and more – gets underway Thursday, April 25 in Norfolk, Va., at the Scope Arena. The American Legion will have two distinguished American Legion women at this year’s celebration with its theme "Celebrating Women in Service to the Nation."

American Legion Past National Commander Denise Rohan and American Legion 100th Anniversary Honorary Committee member Diane Carlson Evans, a Vietnam War combat nurse, will be present at the Tattoo. And The American Legion will display its four-panel “100 Years for God and Country” chronology exhibit at the festival where hundreds of other exhibitors and vendors will be present.

Rohan and Evans will attend the NATO flag raising ceremony the evening of April 25 and participate in the Courage, Commitment and Leadership Forum: Extraordinary Women of the U.S. Military on Friday, April 26, from 1:30-3 p.m. inside the Scope Arena. The event is free and open to the public. Rohan and Evans also will be recognized and honored during the Tattoo Finale later that evening.

Other events where they will be in attendance include the 66th annual Parade of Nations on Saturday, April 27 at 10 a.m.

The Virginia International Tattoo began in 1997, and is the signature event of the Virginia Arts Festival with over 1,000 performers from around the world. The attraction draws in people from over 45 states and more than eight nations to watch “the largest spectacle of music and might in the United States,” with a display of military music, massed pipes and drums, drill teams, heavy athletics, colorful dances, and much more.

For more information on the 2019 Virginia International Tattoo and how to attend, please visit www.vafest.org/tattoo/.