American Legion Post No. 81 launched a new Day of Thanks Sunday to recognize military support personnel who are an important part of military operation but have never been deployed to a war zone.

“We want to acknowledge military personnel support with at least a thank you,” said Rick Villegas, president of the American Legion Riders. “We would like to do it twice a month as long as there is somebody who wants to do it.”

Recipients are not usually veterans of the front lines but more along the lines of military service personnel, Villegas said.

The first military support personnel recognized during the first-time Day of Thanks ceremony was Sarah Jo Lively.

Lively is a 14-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force and is a technical sergeant. She returned from deployment in Qatar Dec. 24, 2009. Lively is currently returning to her station at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb., where she will be promoted to master technical sergeant, Villegas said.

The ceremony was attended by Lake Havasu City Vice-Mayor Don Callahan, Councilwoman Margaret Nyberg, Blue Star Mothers, American Legion members, the VFW commander as well as Lively’s family members.

Lively was raised in Havasu and is a graduate of Lake Havasu High School. She is daughter of Havasu residents Armando and Kish Contla. Lively is a mother of 2-year-old triplets and a 12-year-old daughter.

The next Day of Thanks ceremony is tentatively scheduled in March because the program is still new and will need time to get rolling. In the future, the ceremonies will be scheduled on Saturdays unless there is a conflict with other American Legion events. The ceremonies will be held at the local American Legion of the Veterans of Foreign War Post No. 9401.

To request a military veteran to be recognized for their efforts in a Day of Thanks ceremony, contact American Legion Post No. 81 at 928-855-2552.

You may contact the reporter at jhanson@havasunews.com.