Auburn saluted veterans with what it does best every November – with a grand parade.

Despite rain showers, flags, families and thousands of veterans came down Main Street for the mile-long Veterans Day Parade on Saturday, the 50th in the city’s long tradition of honoring the military and its might.

The parade, one of the largest of its kind west of the Mississippi, drew an estimated 20,000 spectators.

The parade featured more than 200 entries and more than 5,000 parade participants, showcasing American strength of will, endurance and purpose. The parade included more than 30 high school marching bands, honor guards, veterans groups and military vehicles.

The National Veterans Day Committee and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs have once again selected Auburn as one of the few regional sites for Veterans Day observance this year.