There has yet to be a local parade specifically to thank U.S. service members for their service in the war against terror, WCCO reports. That’ll change with the Twin Cities Heroes Parade down Nicollet Mall beginning at 11 a.m. on Saturday. It took a grassroots effort to organize the event.

Governor Dayton ordered state and national flags be flown at half staff Tuesday to honor the memory of Army Sgt. Nicholas Dickhut. He was killed in action in Afghanistan last week. It was Dickhut's second overseas deployment. He'd been awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

The First Lady is in the Twin Cities Friday to learn about how Minnesota programs might help shape national efforts to support military veterans. Nicole Lovald, who started a support group for military members and their families when her husband was deployed twice overseas is among those meeting with Obama.

A Wisconsin man is making good on a promise Saturday to skydive when he's 90 years old. Family members will watch the jump from the ground at Skydive Twin Cities in Baldwin, Wis., as WWII veteran Claude Williams leaps from a plane to celebrate the 68th anniversary of his skydive from a B-17 bomber as it was falling from the sky over Belgium.

The ammunition manufacturer says its been awarded a $37 million contract to provide ammo to the British military. It comes barely a week after being awarded a multi-million dollar contract with Afghanistan’s security forces.