Veteran's Day Message
Dear Brothers, Veterans Day November 11th we will honor those who served, those who fought, those still missing and those who gave their full measure of devotion to our country.
Let’s remember their achievements, their courage and their dedication, and to say thank you for their sacrifices. Thinking of those who join us today and those who are here only in spirit, a person can’t help but feel awed by the enormity of what we encounter. We stand in the midst of patriots and of those who have nobly served. The service members and veterans who are here please stand.
Thank you for answering the call to duty. You have made our armed forces the most respected in the world.
Since the first shots at Lexington and Concord were fired and our Revolutionary War began, American men and women have been answering the nation’s call to duty.
Millions of Americans have fought and died on battlefields here and abroad to defend our freedoms and way of life. Today our troops continue to make the ultimate sacrifices, and even as we lose troops, more Americans step forward to say, I’m ready to serve. They follow in the footsteps of generations of fine Americans.
Veteran’s day, originally called Armistice Day, was originally designated as a day to celebrate the end of World War I. The First World War ended November 11, 1918.
As time went on and we engaged in further conflicts during World War II and Korea, veterans’ groups lobbied for a change. Rather than honoring the armistice and only those who served in World War I, the holiday would now honor all veterans from every war and conflict the United States had encountered. We’ve honored our troops and their service and sacrifice ever since.
We have awarded medals to many Soldiers, added their names to monuments and named buildings for them, to honor them for their bravery. But nothing can ever replace the hole left behind by a fallen service member, and no number of medals and ribbons can comfort the ones left behind.
Veterans Day is a way to say we remember. From the Soldiers who shivered and starved through the winter at Valley Forge to the doughboys crouched in the muddy trenches of France, the Invasion of Normandy, to the platoon who patrolled the hazy jungles of Vietnam and the young man or woman patrolling the mountains of Afghanistan, we remember and honor them all.
Now today, with the trouble in the Ukraine, the terrorist organizations in the Middle East, I hope as lesson was learned from the Vietnam War that our Sons and Daughters will never have to go to a war that our Government doesn’t intend to win.
God bless you and your families, God bless our troops and God bless America.
C & F
RW Joseph J Saglimbene
DDGM Queens District