PITTSBURGH -- Communities throughout the Pittsburgh are taking time to honor soldiers during Veterans Day today.

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VIDEO: Hundreds Gather For Veterans Day Parade Downtown

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Hundreds gathered Wednesday for the annual Pittsburgh Veterans Day Parade, which began at 10:30 a.m at the Mellon Arena downtown.

Bands played patriotic songs and veterans proudly marched. There was then a moment of silence for veterans who died.

Some veterans weighed in on the recent massacre at Fort Hood, Texas, where Army psychiatrist Nidal Malik Hasan is accused of killing 13 people and injuring 30 others.

"You just feel betrayed for them," said Gulf War veteran Capt. Tim Hegadorn. "Know how much work they put into the preparation to go to a very, very hard job, and that they all were stabbed in the back."

"That's an absolute disgrace," said World War II veteran Howard Pfeifer. "Should never have happened, which just goes to show you, you can't be too careful about everything and everybody."

Pittsburgh police Officer Robert Zollars, a 17-year veteran of the police force, led the parade. Zollars, 42, just returned from a 14-month tour of duty in Iraq.

Zollars rode his patrol motorcycle at the front of the parade with his 14-year-old son, Zachary, in his side car.

Zollars is a corporal in the Pennsylvania National Guard's 56th Stryker Brigade and returned from Iraq two months ago. He joined the Army in the late 1980s and left to become a city police officer in 1993.

Zollars joined the National Guard in 2006 because he saw that many service members were having their overseas duty tours extended.

The National Cemetery of the Alleghenies held a special program to honor troops, including a wreath laying and a rifle salute.

In Beaver County, Economy Borough unveiled a new veterans memorial.

And residents and staff of the Southwestern Veterans Center threw a 100th birthday party for veteran Frederic Feldman as part of the center's celebration.

Veterans Day also means some businesses will be closed for the day. All city, county, state and federal offices and courts are closed. So are post offices. Mail won't be picked up or delivered.

Port Authority buses and trolleys are still on a regular schedule, although the downtown service center is closed.

Trash will be picked up on its normal schedule. State liquor stores are open today as well.