ASHVILLE, OH — November 11, 2025 — Veterans across Pickaway County were honored Tuesday morning with a free, hot breakfast at Cherry Street Diner in Ashville, thanks to a partnership between the Pickaway County Progress Partnership (P3), Patriot Engineering, and Anduril Industries.
County Commissioners Harold Henson, Jay Wippel, and Brian Scherer joined dozens of local veterans for the special Veterans Day event, sharing stories, coffee, and gratitude.
“This was really about giving back,” said Brian Hill, Pickaway County’s Economic Development Director. “In my previous work, we always tried to host a veterans’ breakfast at a local restaurant, and it just came together perfectly here. When I mentioned it to our partners at Anduril and Patriot Engineering, they both immediately said they wanted to be involved. It shows how much this community cares about those who’ve served.”
Hill noted that hosting the breakfast at a small, local restaurant like Cherry Street Diner made the event even more meaningful. “It’s important that we do this in our own communities — at places people know and love,” he said. “Hopefully, this is something we can keep building on in future years.”
Commissioner Brian Scherer echoed those sentiments, thanking the event sponsors for their generosity. “The Commissioners really appreciate P3, Patriot Engineering, and Anduril for honoring our Pickaway County veterans by paying for breakfast this morning,” he said. “The veterans were grateful too. We can never do enough to thank them for their service to our country.”
Patriot Engineering and Environmental, Inc., founded in 1995, provides environmental consulting, geotechnical engineering, and construction materials testing services across several states. Anduril Industries, a defense technology company founded in 2017, is currently building Arsenal-1, a massive manufacturing facility near Rickenbacker International Airport in Pickaway County. The plant is expected to begin producing autonomous defense systems in 2026 and bring thousands of jobs to the region.
Cherry Street Diner, the event host, has been a community staple since 1992 — known for its home-style cooking, friendly service, and small-town charm, the location is also veteran-owned.
