INDIANA – Veterans Day is on Saturday, Nov. 11, and is a day set aside to remember and recognize veterans who have served in the U.S. military or who are currently serving to protect our freedoms.
Veterans Day, observed annually on November 11, is a tribute to military veterans who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces. Not to be confused with Memorial Day, which honors those who died while in service, Veterans Day honors all military veterans, including those still with us.
Veterans Day is observed annually on November 11. It’s a holiday honoring men and women who have served in the U.S. armed forces, on the anniversary of the end of World War I.
HISTORY OF VETERANS DAY
Veterans Day, originally celebrated as Armistice Day, was first issued on November 11, 1919, by President Woodrow Wilson a year after the end of World War I. The purpose of Armistice Day was to honor the fallen soldiers of the Great War for their sacrifice and bravery. Seven years later, in 1926, Congress adopted a resolution requesting that President Calvin Coolidge issue annual proclamations on November 11, making Armistice Day a legal holiday.
In 1945, World War II veteran Raymond Weeks had the idea to expand Armistice Day to celebrate all veterans rather than just the ones who died in World War I. He led a delegation to General Dwight Eisenhower, who was all for the idea. Weeks then organized the first Veterans Day celebration in 1945 in Alabama and every year since, until he died in 1985. In 1982, he was honored by President Reagan with the Presidential Citizenship Medal. Weeks was also named the ‘Father of Veterans Day’ by Elizabeth Dole.
In 1954, Ed Rees, the U.S. Representative from Emporia, Kansas, presented a bill to establish the holiday to Congress. Eisenhower, who was then the president and also from Kansas, signed the bill into law on May 26, 1954, eight and a half years after Raymond Weeks held the first Veterans Day. After having been through both World War II and the Korean War, the 83rd U.S. Congress — at the urge of the veterans’ service organizations — amended the Act of 1938 by striking out the word ‘Armistice’ and inserting the word ‘Veterans.’ With the approval of this legislation on June 1, 1954, November 11 became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.
The National Veterans Award was also created in 1954, first received by Congressman Rees for his support in making Veterans Day a federal holiday. Though the holiday is currently and was originally celebrated on November 11, the day was moved to the fourth Monday of October in 1971 due to the Uniform Monday Holiday Act. Finally, on September 20, 1975, President Gerald R. Ford signed a law that returned the annual observance of Veterans Day to its original date of November 11, beginning in 1978.
The holiday is observed by the federal government on a Friday if the holiday falls on a Saturday, or on a Monday if the holiday falls on a Sunday. Federal government closings are established by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. State and local government closings are determined locally and non-government businesses can close or remain open as they see fit, regardless of federal, state, or local government operation determinations.
The United States Senate Resolution 143, which was passed on August 4, 2001, designated the week of November 11 through November 17, 2001, as National Veterans Awareness Week. The resolution called for educational efforts directed at elementary and secondary school students concerning the contributions and sacrifices of veterans.
Members of The American Legion Family organizations — The American Legion, American Legion
Auxiliary, and Sons of The American Legion — will be hosting special events throughout the country to
show their support at local post homes and in their communities. But you don’t have to be part of the
Legion Family to make a difference in the life of a veteran.
Many veterans can take part in these events and take advantage of the special offers at restaurants and stores, but we know not all veterans will be able to. Consider those veterans who can’t easily leave their homes, who feel isolated, or just don’t feel comfortable going out alone.
Anyone can make a difference. It can be as simple as a phone call or text, taking a veteran a meal, or a lunch invitation.
This Veterans Day, join The American Legion Family in a Be the One mission: Be the One to destigmatize asking for mental health support, provide peer-to-peer support and resources, and educate everyone on how they can Be the One.
Why is this important? Pentagon data has shown a rise in military suicides in the past decade.
According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs 2022 National Veteran Suicide Annual Report,
suicide is the second leading cause of death for veterans aged 18 to 44.
How can you help?
- Ask veterans in your life how they are doing.
- Listen when a veteran needs to talk.
- Reach out when you think a veteran might be struggling.
- Those needing help are encouraged to call the Veterans Crisis Line at 988, then press 1. They may also text 838255 or visit the VA crisis line website at www.veteranscrisisline.net.
“Just be the one to save one,” said 2023-2024 ALA National President Lisa Williamson. “All those ones
add up.”
Veterans Day was founded to commemorate the end of World War I on the 11th
day, at the l1th the hour, in the 11th month. Since that day, it has evolved to recognize and honor all
veterans.
VETERANS DAY BY THE NUMBERS
- 19.5 million – the approximate number of veterans in the United States.
- 9 million – the number of veterans over the age of 65.
- 5.06 million – the number of veterans receiving disability compensation.
- 2 million – the number of female veterans of those receiving disability compensation.
- 500k – the number of World War II veterans still living in the United States.
- 1.56 million – the number of veterans in California, the highest number in the country.
- 1.46 million – the number of veterans in Texas, the second-highest number in the country.
- 11% – the percentage of veterans who experience homelessness.
- 50% – the percentage of veterans experiencing homelessness who also live with a mental illness like PTSD.
5 FACTS ABOUT VETERANS IN THE UNITED STATES
- Many have served in at least one warAs of 2018, 18.2 million veterans who are still alive served in at least one war.
- Female veterans9% of all veterans in the U.S. are women.
- As of 2019, the states with the highest percentage of veterans were Alaska, Wyoming, and Virginia.
- World War II veterans325,000 out of 16 million Americans who participated in World War II, were still alive in 2020.
- The Korean WarTwo million veterans served during the Korean War.
