[Music]
Hello and welcome to the West Palm Beach VA
Medical Center's Virtual Veterans Day Celebration!
I would like to extend a very special welcome
to all our veterans who are hospitalized here
in the Medical Center and to all of you at home
who are tuning into this virtual tribute.
Today we take a moment to honor you,
our heroes for your dedication
and selfless sacrifice to our nation.
We start off today's ceremony
with an invocation by Chaplain Barry Wheeler.
Thank you! Let's pray.
Dear God, we thank you for this opportunity
we have to set time aside God
to recognize those who have sacrificed
on behalf of our nation.
God, for those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice
and paid with their lives, God, we thank you for their service.
We thank you for all that they did on our behalf
to defend the freedoms that we enjoy.
God, for those who continue to suffer emotionally or physically
because of the service that they have given to our country.
God, we pray that you would be with them,
that you would give them peace,
that you would assist them Lord in their struggles,
and that you would be with them in their daily lives.
God, we pray that you would be with us
during this time of service
that we may honor those
who have sacrificed so much for us, Lord,
to defend our freedoms that we enjoy.
God, we thank you and praise you.
We pray this in your precious and holy name. Amen!
Thank you Chaplain Wheeler!
We will now pay tribute to our nation
with a presentation of the Colors,
the Pledge of Allegiance and the national anthem.
I pledge allegiance to the Flag
of the United States of America,
and to the Republic for which it stands:
one Nation under God, indivisible,
with liberty and justice for all.
[Music] [U.S. National Anthem]
Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
Today's speaker is a veteran who was a former commissioned
Medical Service Corps Officer in the United States Army.
During his time in service
he oversaw helicopter ambulance employment
and operations for nearly 12 years.
This experience included both domestic
and international operations
in the continental United States, Thailand,
Germany, Kuwait and Iraq.
In January 2009,
he left the military to pursue other career opportunities
where he could continue to serve veterans
and their healthcare needs.
Today's speaker is none other than our Interim Director,
Mr. Cory Price.
Hello everyone and thank you for tuning in to this year's
Veterans Day Ceremony
honoring the service of our American heroes!
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way
we celebrate special occasions and milestones.
As a result we have transitioned our usual
in-person Veterans Day tribute to a virtual one
for everyone's safety.
To those of you watching,
we hope that during today's tribute
you feel our deepest respect, admiration and compassion
for those who honorably served the United States military.
Veterans Day we know today began as Armistice Day
with a November 1919 proclamation
by then President Woodrow Wilson.
At that time our country had just commemorated
the one year anniversary of the end of a global conflict,
the Great War, otherwise known as World War I.
This war was dubbed the war to end all wars
because it had been fought on a scale not seen before.
In fact, our involvement as a country during World War I
was truly historic, as it was the first time
that United States had sent troops overseas
to defend foreign lands.
By the end of the war 4 million troops
served in the United States Army,
with an additional 800,000
in other military service branches.
At the time when President Wilson
signed his 1919 proclamation,
our globe was reeling
from the effects of the Spanish flu pandemic.
That pandemic infected and killed millions of people
and couldn't have happened at a worse time
as it occurred at the height
of the US military involvement in Europe.
Like our experience today with COVID-19,
the Spanish Flu was highly contagious.
It negatively impacted many troops
because they lived in close quarters
which allowed the virus to thrive.
But despite all this, our military endured
and became a global force to be reckoned with.
According to the Library of Congress
World War I provided the United States
with valuable strategic lessons and officer corps
that would become the nucleus for mobilizing
and commanding 16 million American military personnel
in World War II.
And the years since our military forces thrive
unlike any other in the world.
Veterans not only helped
to propel our country's military advancements
and technology and strategy,
we also helped to increase diversity
and inclusion over the years,
becoming the example for the rest of the nation.
And as 1963 earmarks
the graduates of the US Naval Academy,
John F. Kennedy had this to say about serving in the military.
"I can imagine no more rewarding a career.
And any man who may be asked in this century
what he did to make his life worthwhile,
I think can respond with a good deal of pride and satisfaction:
'I served in the United States Navy."
As a former US Army officer and military pilot,
I am proud of my service
and the service of my fellow veterans.
I often wonder when President Wilson proclaimed November 11
as Armistice Day more than 100 years ago
if he knew the impact it would have on American life
and if he could have predicted the amazing way
our country comes together each year to honor
and celebrate the service and sacrifice of American veterans.
I think he would be proud that his work has left a legacy
and I am extremely proud to have served our great country.
To you, Americans veterans,
please accept my heartfelt appreciation
and thanks for your service in the United States armed forces.
May God bless you and your loved ones!
Thank you Mr. Price!
Next we will hear from some of our proud military veterans
and residents of the West Palm Beach VA
Medical Center's Community Living Center.
My name is Rudy Laws.
My name is Benjamin F. Bowers.
Anton Patterson.
I am John Robert Haber.
My name is Peter L. Labbe.
Leroy Alphonso Woodrup.
John Sullivan.
I am Jeanette. I am a Marine. And I was in the Coast Guard.
I am proud to be a veteran,
served in the Army from '70 to '79
and spent two tours in Vietnam.
I was in Vietnam.
I was a Crew Team.
Served two years, nine months and 12 days in the Marine Corps.
I was in the US Army.
I was the member of the United States Air Force
for four years, actively four years in it.
I was originally commissioned in field artillery
and we spent time in Europe,
States and of course Southeast Asia.
We put all the flat... little flat boats,
we put everything on the beach,
so you can see the amphibious landings.
And the message was from Franklin Delano Roosevelt
that Pearl Harbor had been bombed by the Japanese
that morning at 5 o'clock their time.
I defended America from the Communist Guards.
Being a... being a veteran was the best thing
that ever happened to me while I served in the Marine Corps.
I am proud to be a veteran.
Go veterans.
I am proud to be a Marine.
And I am proud to be an American.
[Music]
Thank you to our CLC residents for that wonderful presentation.
Now please enjoy this next musical selection.
[Music]
United States Army.
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
The Navy.
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
The Coast Guard
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
And the Air Force.
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
[Cheering]
As a veteran myself, one of the awesome things
about working at the West Palm Beach VA Medical Center
is being surrounded by those
who once donned the uniform in defense of our great nation.
There is nothing more unifying
than caring for my fellow sisters and brothers in arms.
I am proud to work alongside some of the most compassionate
and caring individuals around.
To all veterans and current active duty service members
tuning in,
we thank you for your service and sacrifice
on behalf of the grateful nation.
We hope you all enjoyed today's presentation
and we sincerely hope
that next year we can celebrate together in person.
Thank you all for watching
and may God bless the United States of America!
[Music]