It is fitting that Veterans Day falls in the month of Thanksgiving. Veterans are great examples of stewards. They offer up their gifts from God such as logistics, physical tenacity, technology and compassion for the good of our country and all of mankind. 

They are reminded daily of the cost of their sacrifice. Many military men and women never return home to their families and today we honor and remember them. 

Today we also remember the living veterans who are now a part of our parish and community. 

Did you know?

• 5 military chaplains, all of them Catholic, have received the Medal of Honor since the Civil War? Two of them are on the path to sainthood. 
• 4 Catholic military chaplains have been recognized for bravery in the line of duty with United States Navy ships named in their honor. The USS Schmitt, the USS O'Callahan, the USS Capodanno and the USS Laboon. Read their bios here.

Read the New England Historical Society account of Father O'Callahan's heroism: 
 

When two bombs struck the USS Franklin.....O’Callahan heard a voice yell, “Padre! Padre! Flight deck forward!” He made his way through the smoke to give last rites to the dying and comfort the wounded. 

O’Callahan yelled to get their attention: “Lads, lads! Wan to save our happy home?” They followed him as he organized them into firefighting parties. Soon a bomb came aboard but didn't emplode. It needed to be defused.  Read more here to learn what happened next.

President Truman awards Lt. Cmdr. Father Joseph T. O'Callahan (far right) the Medal of Honor on January 23, 1946 at the White House. 

"The bravest man I have ever seen"

 

President Obama Awards Medal of Honor to Father Emil Kapaun

Below: President Barack Obama embraces Ray Kapaun after presenting him with the Medal of Honor awarded posthumously to his uncle, Chaplain (Captain) Emil J. Kapaun

"This is the valor we honor today -- an American soldier who didn’t fire a gun, but who wielded the mightiest weapon of all, a love for his brothers so pure that he was willing to die so that they might live. And yet, the incredible story of Father Kapaun does not end there." Read More here

Learn about the Archdiocese for the Miliary Services, USA 

Why do we observe Veterans Day on November 11th? 

The annual observance of Veterans Day in the United States on November 11th  has it roots in the the armistice that ended World War I hostilities in 1918. The armistice between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.  President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed thereafter that November 11 be observed as "Armistice Day."  In 1954, Congress passed legislation that  renamed the federal holiday "Veterans Day," in recognition of the service of veterans of all U.S. Wars.
 

Thank a veteran today!