October 25, 2016
Veterans Day at Ridgecrest Village is something to talk about!
By Karen McCoy
Marketing Director
Ridgecrest Village
We celebrate Veterans Day every year, but how many of us actually know where the holiday came from? Most people know that Veterans Day is a day to honor Americans who have sacrificed their lives for our country, but there is more to the story than you may have realized. To help you celebrate this holiday more deeply, here are some things you may not already know about Veterans Day.
On the 11th Hour of the 11th Day of the 11th Month
On June 28, 1919, WWI had officially ended with the Treaty of Versailles, in the Palace of Versailles in France. However, the fighting continued for an additional seven months and finally ended with an armistice, or a peace agreement, between the Allied Nations and Germany on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, or November 11. The day was commemorated the following year on November 11, as Armistice Day, and was intended to dedicate a day to remind nations to seek peaceful relationships between one another, in hopes that we will never again be divided. Unfortunately, we know, this was not the case.
Armistice Day to Veterans Day
By 1954, our country survived two more major wars, WWII and the Korean War. American effort during World War II (1941-1945) saw the greatest mobilization of the U.S. Army, Navy, Marines and Air Force in the nation’s history (more than 16 million people); some 5.7 million more served in the Korean War (1950 to 1953). At the urging of the service organizations, the 83rd Congress decided to reinstate ‘Armistice Day’ as ‘Veterans Day’ to honor veterans of all wars. President Eisenhower signed the legislation on June 1, 1954.
Veterans Day hasn’t always been celebrated on November 11. In 1968 the Uniforms Holiday Bill ensured three-day weekends for federal employees by celebrating four national holidays on Mondays: Washington’s Birthday, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and Columbus Day. This bill assigned the fourth Monday of October as Veterans Day, despite the disapproval of many states who chose to continue to celebrate the holiday on its original day.
Celebrating Veterans Day
President Gerald R. Ford recognized that the significance of the actual date of Veterans Day carried historical and patriotic value to Americans and veterans who deserved to be honored. So in 1978, he signed a new law returning Veterans Day home to November 11.
At Ridgecrest Village we have always honored our Veterans, and for the last 11 years we have held a special celebration. The celebration is the brain child of Art Peterson and Rev. Charles Huffman both Veteran’s themselves. The first celebration was a luncheon in our private dining room with special cream pies furnished by Iowa Machine Shed. Over lunch the Veteran’s shared stories about their time in the service. Thanks to the dedication of Art Peterson it has grown over the years and now includes Veteran Residents and their families; it is a Grand Family Affair. Art says “It is important to recognize that Veteran’s families sacrificed right along with the Veterans while they were away.” Our program, always held on Veteran’s day, will recognize over 70 Veteran residents this year that live at Ridgecrest and have served in all branches of the service including the Coast Guard. Patriotic marches are played by a six member band, called the “I Don’t Know Yet Band” and music sang by the Honor Flight Choir is accompanied by Lois Larrabee a Ridgecrest resident. There is a salute to members of each branch and the band plays their traditional theme song. Ridgecrest not only honors our resident Veterans, The Honor Flight of the Quad Cities is headquartered here. Our organization generously provides the facilities for Honor Flight to function using space, telephones, computers and all of the necessary items to do all of the work needed to organize and complete an honor flight. When the October Honor Flight flies this year, we will have sent 38 flights to Washington. These flights have been made possible because of the generosity of the QC community. The outpouring of support has been tremendous.
So this year we ask that you focus on the importance of Veterans Day, which is to honor and celebrate veterans for their patriotism, passion for our country, and selflessness in serving for the common good. If you know a Veteran or see one, thank them for their service. Ridgecrest salute’s all Veteran’s for their service to our country, Thank you for serving and thanks to your family as well. You are the reason we sleep safe every night under the Red, White and Blue.
A special thanks to Art Peterson for sharing his story so that I am able to tell you the wonderful history of the patriotism that is shown at Ridgecrest Village. For more information about Ridgecrest Village, contact Mary or Karen at 563-391-3430.
Karen McCoy is the Marketing Director for Ridgecrest Village in Davenport, Iowa.