Courage of Vets Served the Highest Goals

by Jeffrey Bingham Mead
Greenwich Time: November 11, 1986

Veterans Day, 2014

During the cold, somber days of the First World War in Europe, doctor, Charles McMoran Wilson, said of the young servicemen who went off into battle for their country:

"Courage is a moral quality. It is not a chance gift of nature like an aptitude for games. It is a cold choice between two alternatives, the fixed resolve not to quit, an act of renunciation which must be made not once but many times by the power of the will. Courage is will power."

The same high-quality also hold true today of the courageous men and women we honor and commemorate today on Veterans Day. This holiday is set aside annually as a memorial to those who serve our country, fought our nation's wars and were fortunate to come home.

What was once called Armistice Day, this holiday is proclaimed annually by the President of the United States and the state governors in honor of all the former members of the various branches of the U.S. armed services. Veterans Day is dedicated to the observance of those "old soldiers" who served in distinguished service in whatever capacity, to further honor the flag, country and the democratic ideals they fought to defend. 

We are reminded of the  enormous risks and sacrifices our armed forces veterans of made, as well as pay tribute to the special place veterans have an history for their contributions to peace. 

We pause as we do every year with our heads bowed as a united democracy drawn together by spiritual and moral conviction, so that we may pay homage to the hundreds of thousands of men and women, including those locally, who have defended our precious freedoms and the right of those in other lands to enjoy these privileges as well.

History recalls to mind veterans of many wars, with quite a few of the aged, who carry on the tradition of participating in patriotic ceremonies in their respective communities. Memories of the service of the special people have in some cases become dim over time, so that World War II was seeing is far in our distant past.

It was not on June 1, 1954, that Pres. Eisenhower signed an act of Congress "… to honor veterans on the 11th day of November of each year… a day dedicated to world peace."

And so Veterans Day came into being with a host of special observances throughout the nation and at Arlington national Cemetery. It is at the Tomb of the Unknown's where the desire to honor all the dead is symbolized.

Many of us who are young were raised with the quagmire of Vietnam, by far the most frustrating and protested military action in our modern history. We must promise never to bypass paying their respects to the veterans of the of this sad episode. These men and women perform their duties in Southeast Asia without regard to what they thought about the advantages of our presence there or what protesters back home had in mind. This at the very least was not a war characterized by glory. Veterans of the Vietnam conflict deserve more – they have been tested severely, and need a helping hand and an unrestrained compassion and respect of all of us. It is all the more reason their service and sacrifices merits our respect and gratitude.

The Rev. George Yancey, then-pastor of the First Baptist Church in Greenwich, said in 1946 that, "Genuine peace will be difficult to capture, because like the spirit of beauty, it is an abstract. But mankind can find it if he really wants to.

Let us remember that this is a special time to renew hope and faith so that no new generations are called upon to make the sacrifices of past veterans.

Jeffrey Bingham Mead, who lives in Greenwich, is a direct descendent of one of the founding families of the town. He is a free-lance writer and a member of the Greenwich Historical Society.