Proposed Downtown Banners Would Honor Danville Veterans

Mark Marcotte was among the thousands on the sidewalks of downtown Danville when Joshua "Chachi" Corral was returned to his hometown after being killed in Afghanistan in November 2011.

It was a profound moment for Marcotte.. His son Brock was friends with Corral growing up and the two joined the Marines, along with seven other friends, after they graduated from San Ramon Valley High in 2010.

The community's support for the Corral family showed Marcotte that Danville cared deeply about their veterans and Marcotte wanted to give Danville an opportunity to annually show their support for the people who served.

Thanks to an effort spearheaded by Marcotte, Danville is considering hanging 43 banners on light poles downtown, with each banner honoring a different veteran connected to Danville. The 30-inch by 50-inch banners will say, "The Town of Danville Honors," then the name and rank of the veteran, their military branch and where they served.

The Danville Town Council is expected to make a decision on approving the banner idea its meeting Tuesday, town spokesman Geoff Gillette said.

"The genesis of the idea came when Chachi came home," Marcotte said. "The town hangs banner from light poles at different times throughout the year and I thought this would be a good thing to do around Veterans Day."

Marcotte will show the council next week what the completed banner looks like. The first banner honors John T. Corral, Chachi's grandfather.

"I have coffee with (John Corral) every Saturday morning at Bagel Street Cafe," Marcotte said. I thought would honor him with the first banner made."

Marcotte is now looking for other Danville residents to sponsor banners this Veterans Day. For $250, with all the money going to maintain the program, Danville residents can have their own banner made, honoring a veteran of their choosing, which will fly downtown this year and next.

Only Danville residents can sponsor a banner, but the veteran doesn't have to be from Danville, it can be a relative or friend of a Danville resident.

If you're interested, you can email Marcotte for more details at mkmarcotte@aol.com.

Correction: A previous version of this article said the Town Council already approved the banners. They have not been approved yet, according to the Town.