Veterans Day

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Col. Steven Basham, vice commander of the 5th Bomb Wing at Minot Air Force Base, asked those attending the annual Veterans Day Program in Minot to say "thank you" to military veterans every day - not just on Veterans Day.

"Our veterans and their families have borne the costs of Americas wars and conflicts as they stood watch over America's peace and freedom," Basham said.

Basham, who gave the address for the program, said all veterans share a common bond of their oath to defend this nation no matter the danger.

"For this, we owe them a debt of gratitude not just today, but every day," he said.

Basham said people say thank you to many different people every day of their lives. But he said when men and women are asked to drastically change their lives, endure hardships and put their lives on the line, people should thank them.

He said the key purpose of Veterans Day is to say thank you to the many military veterans for their patriotism, their love of country, their willingness to serve and their sacrifice.

Basham told the group that World War I ended on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, and the following year on Nov. 11, 1919, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed the first Armistice Day.

World War II and the Korean War created additional war veterans, Basham said.

On June 1,1954, he said President Eisenhower signed legislation changing the legal holiday of Armistice Day to Veterans Day.

Basham said this nation's veterans are drawn from many backgrounds and many generations.

Today, he said many veterans are young men and women with recent memories of their support in the global war on terrorism.

At this time, he said more than 600 airmen from Minot Air Force Base are deployed around the world.

"They join more than 1.4 million other defenders," he said.

He also said the North Dakota National Guard's 191st Military Police Company currently is deployed in Iraq. That group has 182 soldiers engaged in security operations in that country.

Individually, he said, every veteran has his or her own story about their call to military service, including the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941 and the 9/11 attacks on this nation.

"No matter how their service started, all have earned the right and the honor to be called a veteran," Basham said.

Bill Kolb was master of ceremonies for the program, which was arranged by the Disabled American Veterans Chapter 4 of Minot, with Jim Clifford, chairman. The Rev. Bruce Krebs, of Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church; Daltyn and Dakota Lakoduk of Boy Scouts Troop 416; and the Minot High School-Magic City Campus Band, directed by Dave Jensen, also participated.