Rochester area veterans are marking the 71st anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

The Japanese attack killed thousands of people and launched the United States into World War II.

At the Rochester Yacht Club Friday morning, Pearl Harbor survivors, servicemen and women and their families gathered for a ceremony to honor those lost that day. They commemorated their sacrifices and want to remind everyone about what it means to serve our country.

They observed a moment of silence and tossed a wreath into the water.

Stanley Hwalek, a Pearl Harbor survivor, said, "Remember what happened, the sacrifice that was made in those days. Not only by the military but all the civilians, everything, we all came together, the whole country, and we blew through, we won the war."

More than 2,000 service members and 49 civilians died in the Pearl Harbor attack.