The United States officially observes eleven federal holidays, with our next one this calendar year being Veterans Day. We have celebrated Veterans Day on November 11 each year since 1978.
Many military holidays are celebrated throughout the year, with only January lacking a specific observance. Only three of them are official military holidays observed nationwide each year.
In addition to Veterans Day, which honors all who have served in the United States Armed Forces, there are two other official federal military holidays observed each year nationally: Armed Forces Day, celebrated on the third Saturday in May, which honors all U.S. military personnel, past, present, and future; and Memorial Day, observed the last Monday in May, which pays homage to those who died in military service to their country.
Historically, Veterans Day was originally called “Armistice Day.” It commemorated the Allied victory in World War I in 1918. The armistice took place at 11 A.M. on the 11th day of the 11th month. It honored all U.S. military veterans, living and deceased, wartime, and peacetime.
World War II veteran Raymond Weeks sought to change the name, and he is sometimes regarded as the true “Father of Veterans Day.” He held the first “National Veterans Day” in Birmingham, Alabama.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower later renamed it “Veterans Day” in 1954 to honor all U.S. Veterans, not just those from WWI. However, Congress moved the date again in 1968, this time to October. Congress passed the Uniform Holiday Act to create three-day weekends, placing Veterans Day on the fourth Monday in October.
That lasted until 1975, when President Gerald Ford restored Veterans Day to November 11. Again, this day celebrates all living veterans from all branches of the service. (Incidentally, the name has no apostrophe. It is “Veterans Day,” not “Veteran’s Day” or Veterans’ Day.”) Veterans Day honors all veterans. “It is not owned by one or many veterans – it’s a day to honor them all.”
One of the many things that make this Veterans Day observance unique is the distribution of red poppies as a remembrance for veterans who have served and sacrificed in military conflicts; they are prominently worn and displayed on Veterans Day.
The red poppy remembers the bright red flowers that grew on battlefields in Europe. They represent the blood of soldiers in WWI and life’s resilience amid death and destruction, inspiring the poem “In Flanders Fields” by John McCrae.
From my local perspective, as of 2024, Georgia is home to 656,508 veterans, with around 2,500 living in my home of White County. This is about 8.1 percent of the population.
November 11 is now a nationally recognized federal holiday. In addition to parades saluting veterans across the land, businesses and local organizations offer veterans discounts galore to thank them for their service. Restaurants and national food chains, from A to Z, offer free or discounted meals to soldiers, sailors, and Marines, and, yes, even to the fly boys.
Ladies and gentlemen, and children of all ages, may I suggest a hearty thank-you to any servicemen and women you might cross paths with on Veterans Day, November 11, 2026.
Trust me, a proverbial pat on the back goes a long way, especially for those of us getting long in the tooth. It makes a difference knowing that friends, neighbors, and even strangers take the time to offer their sincere appreciation for their service to this great country of ours.
Maybe it will even dawn on a few of you to think: “Where would this country be today if these hearty souls had not stepped forward?” “Where would we be if they had not stepped up, taken the initiative, and put their goals and dreams on hold so that you and yours could attain yours?”
