Veterans Day–A Time to Thank America’s Heroes

	"Veterans Day is a day to feel proud of my military career. Very few careers give you the opportunity to be part of history or to be ambassadors of freedom around the world. As a soldier, I am proud to have served my country. As a woman, I am proud to have followed those who fought for equality and the right to serve our nation."
	—SFC Carmen Suarez USA (Ret.), 1983-2003 Deputy Director Memorial Education Center

American flags waving in the wind, veterans proudly wearing uniform hats and service medals, and marching bands playing patriotic songs–these sights and sounds can be seen in many, many cities and towns across America each Nov. 11. For some, it may simply be a day off from work, while others look forward to parades or wreath laying ceremonies. But for nearly 90 years, Americans have set aside this special day to thank and honor all those who served honorably in the US military, in wartime and peacetime.

	"I always link the Marine Corps’ birthday (Nov. 10) with Veterans Day (Nov. 11), to commemorate the service of those who have gone before me, as well as being grateful I could serve my country and protect its values."
	—LtCol Karen Riecks USMC (Ret.), 1973-1998 Special Assistant to the President Women’s Memorial Foundation

Unlike Memorial Day, a day to remember service members who died in the service of their country, Veterans Day is intended to thank living veterans for their service and to highlight the fact that all who served in our nation’s defense have sacrificed and done their duty. “This day of national recognition gives us reason to reflect on the remarkable legacy of patriotism that starts with ordinary citizens like you and me,” said Brig Gen Wilma Vaught, Women’s Memorial Foundation President.

	"Service members throughout history have defended our freedom and, in the process, endured hardships, long separations from family and friends, and many have been placed in harms way. Veterans Day is an opportunity to honor and thank these dedicated men and women who have served our great country in the armed forces, as well as a chance for us to reflect on their many sacrifices."
	—MCC Marcy Reborchick USNR, 1990-1992, 1997-present Director, Oral History Program Women’s Memorial Foundation

The celebration of Veterans Day finds its roots in one of the bloodiest, most destructive and far reaching wars in world history–World War I (WWI). Seven months before the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, the official end to “The Great War,” fighting ceased when an armistice between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on Nov. 11, 1918. The first celebration of “Armistice Day” was held one year to the day after the cease fire in Europe. To commemorate that moment–the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month–churches held special services, soldiers paraded and people across our nation observed two minutes of silence in remembrance of soldiers who’d lost their lives. Similar ceremonies were also held in England and France.

	"Veterans Day is a unique time to take a few minutes to reflect upon and recognize the untold sacrifices made by so many through the course of our country’s history, to make and keep our great nation what it is–the land of the free. I’m so thankful for those men and women who have served, are now serving, and those who will continue to answer the call to service to protect and defend our freedoms. I am humbled and so proud to be counted among their numbers."
	—Brig Gen Barbara Goodwin USAF NC (Ret.), 1962-1991 Secretary, Board of Directors Women’s Memorial Foundation

A vital element of the US commemoration was added in 1921, when the body of an unknown American soldier was moved from France and buried at Arlington National Cemetery. The observance on that special day in Washington, DC, included the President laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, now called the Tomb of the Unknowns; an act repeated each Veterans Day since. The tomb, overlooking the Potomac River, originally honored all American soldiers who died fighting in WWI. Guarded 24 hours a day by the men and women of the 3rd US Infantry, the Army’s honor guard, two more Unknowns were buried in the Tomb of the Unknowns in 1958. One was killed in WWII and one in the Korean War. In 1984, an unidentified service member from the Vietnam War was brought to Arlington to join the other Unknowns. The Vietnam soldier was identified through DNA testing and removed in 1998.

	"Veterans Day is my 'Thank You' day. I thank all of our men and women who served this great country, especially my father Louis, a WWI veteran; my husband Walter, a WWII veteran; my son Mark, a veteran who served in Korea; and my son Kurt, a Vietnam veteran. And I thank God for allowing me to serve in the Coast Guard."
	—PhoM3 Lorraine Dieterle USCG SPARs, 1944-1946 Staff Member Memorial Education Center

Congress officially named Armistice Day in 1926, but it did not become a national holiday for another 12 years. To honor veterans of every conflict, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed legislation to change the name from Armistice Day to Veterans Day in 1954.

It was clear that the nation wanted a day of remembrance to honor its military heroes, but the date of celebration was debated in the 1960s and 1970s. A 1968 law allowed Veterans Day to be celebrated each year on the fourth Monday in October. In response to strong feelings about the original date, Congress changed Veterans Day back to Nov. 11, in 1978.

In addition to ceremonies at the Tomb of the Unknowns, it has long been a Veterans Day tradition for observances to be held in each state with parades, patriotic ceremonies and the display of flags. From that awesome day at the end of WWI came a special day of observance of all the women and men who took up arms in defense of America. The Women’s Memorial, too, has become a traditional site for observing this day for all of America’s veterans.

Learn how Veterans Day is celebrated in other countries.

To honor women veterans on this special day, we asked five women who work for or with the Foundation–one woman from each of the US Armed Services–to share their thoughts on Veterans Day; and their words are included in this story. To all women who have served in defense of our nation, including our own staff members, volunteers and Board of Directors, the Women’s Memorial Foundation honors you and thanks you for your service to your country.

November 2006

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