World War I ended officially a century ago tomorrow, at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, 1918 --- an event that will be commemorated widely --- on Veterans Day/Armistice Day in the United States, as Remembrance Day in Britain and Commonwealth nations current and past.
It looks as if the day will dawn cold in Lucas County, but not quite as cold as this morning when the current temperature is 12 degrees.
In Chariton, a 48-star flag and World War I commemorative flag will be raised at 8 a.m. at Veterans Memorial Park by sponsors of the day's events --- Chariton and Russell American Legion posts and members of the Memorial Park commission.
Bell-ringing is scheduled in the park at 11 a.m. and churches are invited to join in, as they did a century ago to celebrate the allied victory.
I'll be presenting a short program at 2 p.m. in the Legion club room, focusing on the 26 young men from Lucas County who died during the war, our "Gold Star Buddies."
And then at sunset (4:57 p.m.) Taps will sound in the Memorial Park.
When compared to other wars, U.S. losses were relatively light because the nation's involvement was relatively short --- approximately 116,000 military personnel lost to disease and in combat. Comparatively, approximately 700,000 British military personnel died in the war. An estimated 17 million soldiers and civilians died altogether.
War is a terrible expression of the human condition and about all we can do about it is to remember those who died and to practice peace, doing our best to see that it doesn't happen again.
No comments:
Post a Comment