At 11 o’clock a.m. Paris time on Nov. 11, 1918, in Compiègne, France, the Allies and the Germans agreed to a temporary cessation of hostilities, an armistice, months before the final peace treaty—the 1919 Treaty of Versailles—brought an end to World War I. And on that day, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed Nov. 11 Armistice Day, to honor the 116,516 U.S. soldiers who died in what came to be called “the war to end all wars.”
But World War I was not the war to end them all. Approximately 418,500 U.S. troops lost their lives on the battlefields of World War II, followed by 33,739 in Korea, 47,378 in the Vietnam War, and more recently, the more than 7,000 who, according to Defense Department estimates, lost their lives between 2001 and the present while serving in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower changed the name of Armistice Day to Veterans Day in 1954 and moved the day’s focus from remembering the dead of World War I to remembering everyone who has served in the U.S. military. So, while Memorial Day is a solemn occasion for remembering our war dead, Veterans Day, Nov. 11, is a day to honor the estimated 18 million living U.S. veterans, 483 of whom, according to the most recent U.S. Census, live in Harvard. And soon, thanks to the work of the town’s War Monument Restoration Committee, the scores of residents who have served during more recent conflicts will be recognized on new tablets at the World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and Gulf War Era monument on the Common.
This Veterans Day comes at a critically divisive time in our nation’s history. But as we reflect on the sacrifices our veterans have made, we can all agree on one thing: We owe them our deep gratitude and a commitment to help ease the sometimes difficult transition to civilian life and a willingness to devote whatever resources they need to heal their wounds. It’s the least we can do for those who have served their country so well.
A version of this editorial first appeared in the Nov. 9, 2017, issue of the Press.
