As far as veterans' parades in Palmerton go, Fred Charles of Whitehall has come full circle ... and he's done it wearing the same boots!

In 1958, Charles appeared with his Allentown National Guard unit in a parade in Palmerton in late May, which he feels was probably a Memorial Day. Last Sunday - 52 years later - he returned to Palmerton to participate in the Carbon County Veterans Day Parade.The biggest difference is that while he was marching with his unit in the 1958 parade, on Sunday he was riding. He was the driver of Jim Zbick's 1945 Willy's MB Jeep. It was fortunate he rode in this one because he was wearing the same combat boots he wore in the parade over five decades ago."They were a little stiff and had a little dry-rot but I thought that it would be more important to pay tribute to our soldiers with the same boots I wore then," he said.The rest of he and Zbick's garb were vintage World War II. Both men are members of the Forks of the Delaware Historical Arms Society, based in Bethlehem, where the members are sticklers for authenticity in military clothing and hardware. For Sunday's parade, Zbick of Mahoning Township and Bill Parks of Kunkletown were also representing the Red Ball Military Transport organization, based in Belvidere, N.J.As for comparing the two Palmerton parades 52 years apart, Charles said he recalls the first one being held in early evening and in a cold drizzle the early evening. That parade travelled the entire length of Delaware Avenue while on Sunday, the participants made a right onto Third Street and a left onto Franklin.Charles said the fact that Delaware Avenue is such a wide and level street makes Palmerton a great place to stage a parade. He's also impressed by the people and their patriotism."This is certainly Americana at its best," Charles said of Palmerton and its people. "You can see that the people are very supportive of their home-town heroes - the men and women in the military."