Steve Harrell did not get the warm welcome he was hoping for when he returned home to the U.S. after fighting in the Vietnam War in 1972.

While nothing will ever make up for the way military men and women were treated after that conflict, events like Saturday’s grand parade at the Four Flags Area Apple Festival help make the 62-year-old Niles man feel appreciated.

“It means a lot because when I was in the service and got out — we were looked down upon,” said Harrell, who served two years in the U.S. Army as a heavy equipment operator. “Now people are respecting us, so it means a lot to know people are supporting you.”

The theme for this year’s Apple Festival was “ Apple Festival Salutes Our Troops,” so special attention was given to those who served their country in the American armed forces. Organizers made special floats outfitted with military vehicles and even placed pictures of area veterans on the side of the floats.

Spectators cheered, waved American flags and saluted the veterans and active servicemen and women as they motored down the Niles streets on floats and vehicles.

Twenty-eight year-old Mike Zeider, who served six years in the U.S. Navy, said he too felt the support from the Niles community.

“Growing up, Niles has always been a military-oriented town,” said Zeider, who graduated from Niles High in 2006. “It seems like a lot of veterans are either in Niles or coming to Niles. I think it was a really smart move to have this as a theme.”

Madalyn Crocker-Alford rode in the seedlings float with her great-grandson.

The 1958 Niles High grad served in the Navy as a hospital corpsman from 1958 to 1961.

“To watch and to look at all those pictures [of veterans] most people don’t realize how many are veterans because we come back and go into everyday life,” she said. “To look and see how many are Niles veterans is just awe inspiring.”