Veterans Day
WHEREAS, more than 820,000 Virginians are veterans of the U. S. Armed Forces; and
WHEREAS, these men and women have made significant sacrifices to defend freedom, the Commonwealth, and the Nation; and
WHEREAS, the citizens of Virginia owe a debt of gratitude and more to the men and women who have worn the uniform and served and defended our great nation; and
WHEREAS, the armistice ending World War I, the war to end all wars, went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918; and
WHEREAS, in 1938 Congress declared November 11th a legal holiday known as Armistice Day, and in 1954 Congress replaced the word armistice with the word veterans and President Eisenhower issued the first Veterans Day Proclamation; and
WHEREAS, the 1968 passage of the Uniform Holiday Bill moved the observance of Veterans Day to a Monday, and President Ford in 1975 signed a law returning Veterans Day to November 11, beginning in 1978; and
WHEREAS, November 11th is a day to honor and reflect on the service and sacrifice made by all veterans and their families,
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Robert F. McDonnell, do hereby recognize November 11, 2011 as VETERANS DAY in our COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, and I call this observance to the attention of all our citizens; and
FURTHERMORE, I urge all citizens of our Commonwealth, wherever possible, to commemorate Veterans Day on 11-11-11 with a moment of silence at 11:00 am.