Veterans Day in Pahrump will include two ceremonies this year.

Service and sacrifice – this is what every American military member has given to the country. To don a uniform of the U.S. Armed Forces takes courage, dedication and a willingness to serve and the men and woman who bravely take up that duty are honored each year during Veterans Day.

Here in Pahrump, where there are thousands of veterans who call the valley home, Veterans Day always includes events to mark the occasion. This year, both the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post #10054 and the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Chapter #15 will once again be holding ceremonies in celebration and the entire community is encouraged to join in to show their support for those who have served.

The history behind Veterans Day

Veterans Day, observed of November 11, got its start over 100 years ago as Armistice Day, a commemoration of the end of World War I, which was known as “The Great War”. Though the war officially concluded with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles in June 1919, the battles themselves had stopped months earlier, when an armistice, a cessation of hostilities, between the Allied Nations and Germany was issued. The armistice went into effect at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918.

“For that reason, November 11, 1918 is generally regarded as the end of the ‘war to end all wars’,” information from the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA) details. “In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: ‘To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…’”

It wasn’t until 1938, however, that “Armistice Day” became a legal, federal holiday and its intent was to honor those who fought in World War I. That intent was then altered in 1954, when veterans’ service organizations pushed for and obtained an amendment to the act that created “Armistice Day”. The term “Armistice” was struck from the document and replaced with the word “Veterans”, thereby changing the holiday to one that honors American veterans of all wars. This was followed by the first Veterans Day Proclamation, issued by President Dwight D. Eisenhower that same year.

Then, in 1968, Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act in order to provide multiple three-day weekends each year for federal employees. The act initially included Veterans Day, along with George Washington’s birthday, Memorial Day and Columbus Day. The uniform holiday act went into effect in 1971 but the altered date for Veterans Day created such confusion and resistance that presidential action was taken to restore its date.

“It was quite apparent that the commemoration of this day was a matter of historic and patriotic significance to a great number of our citizens,” the VA explains. “So, on September 20, 1975, President Gerald R. Ford signed Public Law 94-97, which returned the annual observance of Veterans Day to its original date on November 11, beginning in 1978. This action supported the desires of the overwhelming majority of state legislatures, all major veterans’ service organizations and the American people.”

Ceremonies slated for next Wednesday

Veterans Day in Pahrump will kick off with the VFW’s ceremony, which will take place Wednesday, November 11 at the post and at a very specific time, in recognition of the significance of the day. Attendees will begin filing in around 11 a.m. and the ceremony itself will begin at 11:11 a.m., with post officials expected to offer their thoughts and comments on the purpose and meaning behind the day.

After the Veterans Day Ceremony, everyone is invited to make their way inside the post for a free lunch from 11:30 to 1:30 p.m., or until the meal runs out.

Then it will be time to head over to the Pahrump Veterans Memorial inside the Chief Tecopa Cemetery for the second Veterans Day ceremony, hosted by the DAV. This event will also include comments from various speakers, along with traditional military features, such as the wreath ceremony and the ID/Dog Tag ceremony.

The DAV’s observance will take place at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, November 11 and refreshments will be served.

Contact reporter Robin Hebrock at rhebrock@pvtimes.com