He pointed out that had America lost in 1918, such a question would not be asked, for tyranny would be at the country’s shore, in its cities, and at people’s doors as it presently was in occupied Europe. He then said, “Sgt. York spoke thus of the cynics and the doubters: ‘The thing they forget is that liberty and freedom and democracy are so very precious that you do not fight to win them once and stop. You do not do that. Liberty and freedom and democracy are prizes awarded only to those peoples who fight to win them and then keep fighting eternally to hold them.’”
Weeks’ continued efforts gained growing support, and on June 1, 1954, Eisenhower signed legislation that officially changed Armistice Day to Veterans Day, with a broadened definition that paid “homage to all of its veterans.”
Roosevelt closed with an observation that Americans “believe that liberty is worth fighting for.” And he closed his remarks with the statement, “This duty we owe, not to ourselves alone, but to the many dead who died to gain our freedom for us – to make the world a place where freedom can live and grow into the ages.”
The guns of World War II had been silent less than three months when a Nov. 11, 1945, New York Times headline stated the thought on everyone’s mind: “Armistice Day of 1945 Brings Up Comparisons.” President Harry S Truman, himself a veteran of what was now called World War I, issued a proclamation calling on Americans to build “an enduring peace among the countries of the world.” Many wondered how it could happen. The article noted that, compared to 1919, world leaders had a “tougher job this time.” Though Armistice Day officially commemorated only the service and sacrifice of World War I veterans, 1945 ceremonies included veterans from both world wars.
In late 1945, World War II veteran Raymond Weeks petitioned Army Chief of Staff General of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower to change the name of Armistice Day, with its World War I association, to a more inclusive Veterans Day that honored all veterans. He became a driving force to that effect. On Nov. 11, 1947, his hometown of Birmingham, Alabama, staged the first Veterans Day celebration, with General of the Army Omar Bradley as its keynote speaker. Weeks’ continued efforts gained growing support, and on June 1, 1954, Eisenhower signed legislation that officially changed Armistice Day to Veterans Day, with a broadened definition that paid “homage to all of its veterans.”
Raymond Weeks petitions Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower to establish a national Veterans Day at the Pentagon in 1946. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum
On Aug. 3, 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a bill paying tribute to the unknowns from World War II and the Korean War. In 1958, the remains of two World War II unknowns, one from the European Theater and one from the Pacific Theater, and four unknowns from the Korean War were exhumed and their caskets lay in state in the Capitol Rotunda until May 30, 1958, when they were interred at Arlington. A Vietnam War unknown was added in 1984. In 1998, he was identified through DNA testing and returned to his next of kin for burial. All unknowns posthumously received the Medal of Honor.
On Nov. 11, 1982, in a White House ceremony, President Ronald Reagan awarded Weeks, the “Father of Veterans Day,” with the Presidential Citizens Medal, the nation’s second-highest civilian award. In his remarks, Reagan said, “For more than 50 years, Mr. Weeks has exemplified the finest traditions of American voluntarism by his unselfish service to his country. As director of the National Veterans Day Celebration in Birmingham for the past 36 years, Raymond Weeks … has devoted his life to serving others, his community, the American veteran, and his nation.”