I never really cared much about Veteran's Day when I was younger, but when I became an adult I realized just how important this day is, not just for the veteran's who put their lives on the line for their country, but for us non-veteran's, too. We need to remember to honor and thank those who served in our armed forces.
In thinking about Veteran's Day today, I decided to look up the history of this day and this is what I found (taken from the US Department of Veterans Affairs website):
"World War I – known at the time as “The Great War” - officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.”
In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: "To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…"
When a bill went into effect that changed Armistice Day to Veteran's Day, there was much debate about when the day would be celebrated. Some wanted all holidays with patriotic significance to be observed on a Monday so that people would have a three day weekend, but other wanted this day to be celebrated on the 11th no matter which day of the week the 11th happened to fall on. Well, I guess we all know which side won that debate. :)
So, let me encourage you to go out of your way to thank a Veteran today. I will personally be calling my dad, Victor Iwanoff, to thank him for his service to our country in the Vietnam War. I remember my dad telling me stories when I was a young girl about the way the young men of this country were treated upon their return from Vietnam. It seems our country as a whole was too ignorant to know that they could support the troops, but not the war. My dad told me that after a year (or longer) of being in the Vietnam jungle, soldiers would return back to the US with out a thank you, but instead they were literally spat upon and protested against. When I got older this broke my heart for my dad--a man who wasn't even born an American but immigrated to the USA from Germany as a boy and still loved his country enough to enlist when his country needed him. He didn't wait to be drafted and he didn't run away like so many cowardly men did.
Several years ago I sent my dad a card for Veteran's Day letting him know that he is and always will be my hero. I thanked him for what he did and I told him how much his service meant to me. When he called me to let me know that he received the card, he told me that no one had ever thanked him before for that. I cried.
Dad, I don't know if you'll ever read this message, but thank you. Thank you for fighting for our country, even when it wasn't the popular thing to do. Thank you for being a model of courage before I was even a thought in your mind. But most of all, dad, thank you for being you. I love you!
So again, I encourage you to thank, really THANK, a Veteran today. I know you'll be glad you did!
Have a great day!
1 comment:
I sent a card one year to my grandfather for veterans day, thanking him for serving during WWII in the Coast Guard. He too, had never received such a thing! He was a man of few words anyway, but I could tell it meant a great deal to him.
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