Photo By Staff Sgt. William Banton | The Alaska Department of Military & Veterans Affairs hosted a Veterans and Remembrance...... read more read more
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JOINT BASE ELEMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- The Alaska National Guard and the Alaska Department of Military and Veterans Affairs hosted a Veterans Day ceremony on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, in coordination with the Royal Canadian Armed Forces Remembrance Day Ceremony at Fort Richardson National Cemetery, Nov. 11.
Hundreds of veterans and their families attended the ceremonies, which included music, speeches, presentation of awards and wreaths and readings of Veterans Day proclamations from President Barack Obama and Alaska Gov. Bill Walker.
“Our veterans left everything they knew and loved and served with exemplary dedication and courage so we could all know a safer America and a more just world,” Obama wrote in his proclamation. “They have been tested in ways the rest of us may never fully understand, and it is our duty to fulfill our sacred obligation to our veterans and their families.
"On Veterans Day, and every day, let us show them the extraordinary gratitude they so rightly deserve, and let us recommit to pledging our full support for them in all they do.”
Walker echoed this same sentiment in his proclamation to the state of Alaska.
“Veterans Day is a time to honor America’s veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and willingness to uphold the nation’s founding principles of liberty, opportunity, and justice for all,” Walker wrote. “Alaska is home to approximately 75,000 military veterans who have served our nation honorably and selflessly, both at home and abroad, protecting the liberty of our nation and liberating the oppressed from tyranny and terror … today we express our gratitude for the men and women who risk their lives every day to protect our families and our freedom, and for those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for the freedom of others.”
The keynote address for the day’s event was made by Brig. Gen. Laurie Hummel, Alaska National Guard adjutant general, who spent time talking the term hero and how it is a too easy used substitute for harder conversations which society should be having about the human cost of war.
Hummel defined the word hero as “a person of character who in the face danger, adversity or from a position of weakness displays courage, bravery or self-sacrifice for a greater good.”
“That is you, never doubt for a moment even if it isn’t self-evident to you,” Hummel said addressing the veterans in attendance. “True heroism is remarkably sober and very undramatic. I would add that it’s not the courage to surpass all others at whatever the cost but the courage serve others at whatever the cost [that defines a hero].”
The day’s events concluded with the Remembrance Day Ceremony, which provided an opportunity for JBER leadership to honor Canadian service member with moments of silence and laying wreaths.
In Canada, Remembrance Day celebrates Canadians who died in the First and Second World Wars, Korean War, Afghanistan and peacekeeping duties. The first Remembrance Day was conducted in 1919 throughout the British Commonwealth.
| Date Taken: | 11.11.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 11.17.2015 14:24 |
| Story ID: | 182155 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, AK, US |
| Web Views: | 20 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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