Ryan Yantis, a U.S. Army veteran, said he was at the Pentagon on 9/11 when American Airlines Flight 77 hit the building in Washington, D.C.

Rick “Duke” Hazdra recounts his story of making it back to the U.S. when he was in the Air Force, flying on fumes and luck from Saudi Arabia, landing in Georgia, then getting from Midway to McHenry in a snowstorm - all on Christmas Eve.

Lolly Peters recently retired from McHenry School District 15. The veteran joined the Womens Army Corps in 1976 and welcomed Vietnam veterans home - including her own two brothers – when she was stationed on the West Coast.

The three were among a rotating panel of McHenry County veterans at both McHenry High School District 156′s Upper and Lower campuses on Friday, sharing their stories and answering questions about their time in the service.

The event was just one of several held throughout the county this week in remembrance of Veterans Day. Events continue on Saturday, with observances planned in Crystal Lake, Huntley, McHenry and Richmond.

On Wednesday, Alden-Hebron High School invited the Great Lakes Naval Base Band, as well as special guest veterans speaking to students and presentations from students across District 19.

The McHenry County Administration Building in Woodstock is bathed in light through Sunday as part of Operation Green Light.

“The nationwide observance honors the service and sacrifice of the men and women who served our country in the Armed Forces through the shining of green lights at county government buildings – and symbolically bringing attention to the benefits they earned, and how they can access them,” according to a release from the county this week.

The McHenry High School Veterans Day event has become an annual tradition, said Sean Sterner, social science division chair. Students sit in on the panel during their social science classes, or can stop in during an open period.

“The purpose is to spend the day honoring veterans and giving students the opportunity to interact” with veterans, too, Sterner said. “We decided as a district that instead of a day off, we wanted a forum instead.”

By asking the veterans questions, students become a part of the “inquiry-based learning” the school encourages.

Among the questions students asked the veterans at the McHenry High Upper Campus panel was “What is your favorite memory?”

For Peters, it was at the end of the Vietnam War. Working at Fort Lewis, people she knew came through as they were leaving the Army. Friends, she said, often came through her station and they could talk as she helped to sort through their records. “That was a good experience for me,” Peters said.

Vietnam veteran Ken Houser retired as a Marine Chaplin. He noted that Friday also was the Marine Corps’ 248th birthday.

He remembers being under constant attack and sleeping with his M14 rifle, which he named Betsy. Still there were favorite memories, like watching movies outdoors. “It was the only time I could really relax ... it got us away from what was going on in the real world,” Houser said.

Not all of those on the panel were older veterans. Colin Brennan, 27, went into the Marines after he graduated from McHenry West High School.

While he enjoys talking to the students about his time in the military, Brennan said he hopes they come away with an understanding of what a life in service to others means.

“I want to show them they can do different things with their lives to help and inspire other people,” Brennan said. “It is helping others at all costs.”