Saturday, November 14, 2026
This week we paused to honor our veterans. I find myself thinking about how we carry that appreciation into the rest of the year.
The armistice that stopped the fighting in World War I took effect on Nov. 11, 1918. The following year, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed the first observance of Armistice Day, honoring those who served and sacrificed, and in 1938, Congress established it as a federal holiday. It was renamed Veterans Day in 1954 to honor all American veterans. Its purpose expanded, but its foundation remained the same: gratitude, remembrance and awareness of the cost of peace.
That gratitude remains, but I sometimes wonder whether we feel as connected to the people and stories behind the holiday as we once did.
Perhaps part of the reason is that fewer of us have a personal connection to military service. After World War II and the Korean War, so many families had someone who had served — a father, brother, uncle or neighbor. In 1980, veterans made up about 18 percent of American adults, but by 2022 that number had fallen to 6 percent. Stories once shared around the dinner table are now something many families hear only occasionally.
As fewer Americans experience military service through their immediate families, the distance between understanding sacrifice and simply acknowledging it can grow.
The Greatest Generation is also passing from living memory into history. For those who lived through World War II, ceremonies recalled sacrifices they had witnessed firsthand. Younger generations increasingly experience them through books, photos and stories. Keeping that history meaningful requires us to tell those stories — and to listen.
It’s heartwarming to hear someone greet a veteran or someone in uniform with “Thank you for your service.” Those words matter, and I don’t suggest that Americans have stopped caring about veterans or the sacrifices they have made. But as fewer of us have a personal connection to military service, our communities have a greater responsibility to keep those stories alive and ensure that veterans’ service and sacrifice are remembered.
In Amityville, we recently celebrated the 80th anniversary of the Sgt. John J. Kreyer and Pvt. Edward V. Asip Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7223. The post’s name connects generations of local sacrifice. Kreyer, a 1942 Amityville High School graduate, died in action during World War II, on April 16, 1945. In 2022 the post was renamed to included Asip, also an Amityville High graduate and the village’s only casualty of the Vietnam War, who was killed on May 8, 1967.
Their names remind us that the history of military service belongs to our own community. Behind each name was a family, friendships and a future that would never be fully lived.
An anniversary such as this also reminds us how veterans’ organizations maintain that connection. Their continued presence gives us an opportunity to bring generations together and ensure that local service and sacrifice remain part of our shared memory.
Our Hometown Hero banners have lined our streets for years, but I still take time to look at them. Some names are familiar; others are not. Each photo makes me think about the person in it, their story, and how much they mean — or meant — to those who love them. A photo on a streetlight is a simple gesture, but for a family, that recognition can mean so much.
The Kiwanis Club’s Field of Honor offers that same connection with its beautiful display of waving flags. Together these tributes bring service and sacrifice into our everyday lives, giving us a reason to pause, remember, and share those stories with the next generation.
Although Veterans Day has passed, the opportunities to honor those who served are still all around us. Talk to a veteran. Ask a question. Listen to a story. Take a moment to look at a Hometown Hero banner with your children or grandchildren and talk about the person pictured.
We can’t expect the meaning of Veterans Day to carry itself from one generation to the next. We must carry it forward.
Nov. 11 reminds us to pause, to remember, and to show up. What we do on the days that follow matters just as much.
Michael O’Neill is the mayor of Amityville.
