U.S. REP. GREGORY W. MEEKS STATEMENT ON VETERANS DAY

November 11, 2013

Excerpt:On Veteran's Day 2013, let the Congress, the Administration, the business community, which has already launched many admirable initiatives to hire veterans, and the American people redouble our commitment with new concrete and specific deeds that will demonstrate our eternal gratitude for our veterans' service to our nation.

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Gregory W. Meeks (NY-05) released the following statement today in recognition of Veterans Day:

"Veteran's Day originated as an annual commemoration of the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month when the 1918 armistice ending World War I took effect. Every year since, we honor our veterans -- both those who made the ultimate sacrifice and those who returned to their families and civilian life. Through the generations, whether in World War II in the 1940s, UN peacekeeping mission in Korea in the early 1950s, the large scale sustained action in Vietnam in the 1960s, Iraq and Afghanistan starting a decade ago, or our targeted humanitarian operations providing relief to nations besieged by catastrophic natural disasters like the Philippines at this moment, our men and women in uniform performed valiantly in each situation their grateful nation asked them to engage.

“Our soldiers, sailors, marines, flyers, and coast guard are carrying their assignments in difficult and complex conditions, but they are doing so with skill, dedication, and determination. The least we can do in return as a government and nation is honor their service not only with words but deeds. America must do everything it can for its veterans to make the transition back to civilian life as easy as possible. By providing the health care they require, access to education and training that builds upon and develops the skills they learned in the military, and providing jobs that will enable them to support their families.

“With President Obama having ended the war in Iraq two years ago and the withdrawal of our troops from Afghanistan due to be completed just a year from now, tens of thousands of troops shortly will return to their families and civilian life. The task of providing for our veterans and their families is all the more urgent. On Veteran's Day 2013, let the Congress, the Administration, the business community, which has already launched many admirable initiatives to hire veterans, and the American people redouble our commitment with new concrete and specific deeds that will demonstrate our eternal gratitude for our veterans' service to our nation."[End]