According to the statistics I have seen, there are 23 million living veterans, 48 million Americans have served since 1776, and nearly one million died in combat or combat related events. War has terrible consequences. The reality of war is different -- it is ugly, it is deadly, and unfortunately, sometimes it is unavoidable. When it is unavoidable, we are lucky to have men and women who are willing to serve our country and make the ultimate sacrifice, if necessary. We are a nation born out of war. We declared ourselves independent from the British in 1776. It took us eight years to earn our independence from the British through the American Revolutionary War.
I am not sure who said it, but a well-known quote is that a Veteran is someone, who at one point in their life, wrote a blank check payable to the United States of America for an amount up to, and including their life.
In the United Methodist Church, a resolution first adopted in 2000, and reaffirmed in 2004 and 2008, that the UMC honors, supports, and upholds in our prayers those men and women who serve in our armed services. ... It also urges that local churches “extend a welcome home to persons who return from service in the armed forces to respect their stories and interpretations of their experiences, and to value and encourage expression of their potential contributions to the ministry of our churches.” It also encourages members “to pray for persons serving in the armed forces and their families, to pray for persons whom circumstances have caused us to relate to as enemies, to pray for other persons for whom war has caused suffering, and to pray for peace.”
Veterans Day is usually observed with parades, speeches, and floral tributes placed on graves or memorials of those who served. In the United States, group naturalization ceremonies have come to be an important part of the day's activities.
Special Veterans Day services are held at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Va., and at similar shrines in other countries. Churches observe two minutes of silence. In 1921, the body of an unknown American soldier was moved from France to be buried in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, DC. The tomb honored all American soldiers who died fighting in the war. Two more unidentified American war dead were buried at Arlington in 1958. One was killed in WWII and the other in the Korean Warn. Then, in 1984, a body from the Vietnam War was brought to join the other unknowns. The 3rd US Infantry, the Army/s honor guard, keeps a constant vigil over the tomb and it is a tradition for the president to lay a wreath at the tomb each Veterans Day.
Veteran Facts 2014
There are approximately 23.2 million military veterans in the United States.
48 million Americans have served since 1776
Nearly one million died in combat or combat related events
•9.2 million veterans are over the age of 65.
•1.9 million veterans are under the age of 35.
•1.8 million veterans are women.
•2.6 million veterans served during World War II (1941-1945).
•2.8 million veterans served during the Korean War (1950-1953).
•7.8 million veterans served during the Vietnam War era (1964-1975), which represents 33% of all living veterans.
•5.2 million veterans served during the Gulf War (representing service from Aug. 2, 1990, to present).
•6 million veterans served in peacetime.
•As of 2008, 2.9 million veterans received compensation for service-connected disabilities.
•5 states have more than 1 million veterans in among their population: California (2.1 million), Florida (1.7 million), Texas (1.7 million), New York (1 million) and Pennsylvania (1 million).
•The VA health care system had 54 hospitals in 1930, since then it has expanded to include 171 medical centers; more than 350 outpatient, community, and outreach clinics; 126 nursing home care units; and 35 live-in care facilities for injured or disabled vets. Abraham Lincoln made a promise to veterans in his Second Inaugural Address in 1865, when he promised that America would “…care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan.” That promise is VA’s motto.
The All-Volunteer Force in place in the U.S. today relies on men and women to step up and volunteer. Without volunteers, the system would cease to function, and the U.S. would have to rely on a conscription service, denying young men and women the choice of whether they serve in the military. When choosing to volunteer, service members do much more than march off to war to be a hero. They give up personal autonomy on where they live. They sacrifice holidays, birthdays, and family milestones for the greater good. They postpone educational pursuits and professional careers. They strain relationships, push loved ones to the breaking point, and leave memories behind every few years as their lives are upheaved and moved again. They forego personal passions and hobbies for the long hours necessary to ensure that the United States has the most professional and successful fighting force on the planet. And they have all volunteered willingly to do all of this. Less than 1% of the population of the U.S. serves in the military. So, for every 1 of us who serves, more than 100 do not have to.
Thank a veteran that you knew you would be present for the birth of all your children.
Thank a veteran that you have pursued your educational goals safely and uninterrupted.
Thank a veteran that your biggest stress is not getting to your training ride, workout, spin class, yoga, pilates, or run in for the day.
Thank a veteran that you can sit home nights and write.
Thank a veteran that you have pursued a successful professional career and living the high life.
Thank a veteran that you have the security to be a stay-at-home parent.
Thank a veteran that you have chosen to make your home close to your, or far from your family, close to the ocean or deep in the mountain… but you choose it.
Thank a veteran that you were able to attend every one of your child’s sporting events, music recitals, spelling bees and parent-teacher conferences.
Thank a veteran that your spouse or partner comes home predictably every day.
Thank a veteran that you have your weekends free.
Thank a veteran that you pursued your passion as an actor, pastor, professional athlete, model, musician, under water basket weaver, or whatever you chose to do.
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