Look After Those Who Answered the Call

In the eleventh month, on the eleventh day, at eleven AM, in 1918, the Treaty of Versailles was signed ending the Great War, later known as World War I.

On this eleventh day of the eleventh month in 2023, we here in these United States celebrate Veterans Day—a day to honor the veterans of our armed services. This is a great day to thank a vet. But if we really care about those who have served our country, we should also use this as an opportunity to encourage our legislators at all levels to be sure our veterans are cared for as they should be. Many of them carry unseen scars.

The British historian and social commentator, H.G. Wells, wrote that the Great War was the “War to end all wars.” By 1918 it was obvious that might not be true, and British Staff Officer Archibald Wavel wrote, “After the ‘war to end all wars,’ they seem to have been pretty successful in making ‘Peace to end all Peace.’” We are reminded that it was Jesus who said, “You will here of wars and rumors of wars.” Sadly, war has been a part of life before and after the birth of our Lord…even now.

It is interesting to note how those men who served in the horrid trenches of the Great War (World War I) were treated by the government that sent them there. After the stock market crash of 1929, the Great Depression swept the country and the world. By 1932 the unemployment rate in the country was nearly 25%. Think about that for a moment—nearly one fourth of American workers were out of work. In the spring and summer of 1932 some 17,000 veterans and their families camped out in Washington, DC demanding their promised bonuses. These were men who had served in the war and promised a bonus of $1.25 for every day they were overseas, and $1.00 for every day they served in the homeland.

The Attorney General in the Hoover Administration, William D. Mitchell, ordered the shanty town torn down and all veterans and their families removed on July 28, 1932. When Washington, D.C. police met with resistance from these war veterans, two veterans were shot and later died from their wounds.

President Herbert Hoover ordered the army to remove the veterans and their families. Army Chief of Staff Douglas MacArthur sent in troops and five tanks to remove these veterans of the Great War and their wives and children—veterans who only wanted what was rightfully theirs to help them through the difficult economic times—Hoover’s Times, as many called it.

In the summer of 1933 many veterans and their families returned to Washington again. President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave them all jobs in his newly formed Civilian Conservation Corp at Fort Hunt, Virginia, and those who didn’t take jobs were given transportation back home. By 1936, the veterans had received their promised bonuses.

I write that story to remind us of the need to care for and look after those who answered the call to serve our country and protect our freedoms. Today is the day to, not only thank a vet, but also to remember to encourage those with the responsibility, to look after the needs of those who served. Blessings for this Veterans Day, 11/11/23.