Veteran's Day Commemoration 1998

REMARKS OF KAREN W. MORSE, PRESIDENT
11:00 a.m.  November 11, 1998

Thanks are due to the Center for Veteran’s Affairs for arranging this event, which is unique among universities in Washington.  We celebrate this 80th anniversary of Armistice Day by gathering together to express our respect and high regard for the men and women who have served and sacrificed to keep us free – America’s veterans.  Many Western students, faculty and staff have served in the U.S. armed forces.  The fact that those of us in the university can dedicate ourselves to creating, criticizing, and contributing to the advancement of knowledge, is a tribute to the dedication and commitment of our veterans to the survival and strength of this nation.

As we anticipate the beginning of a new century, we look back on the trials and triumphs of this one. The collective experience of our 25 million living veterans represents the turbulence and progress of our nation.  Our veterans wrote much of the history of the last hundred years ­ from the gas-filled trenches of World War I to the flaming deserts of the Gulf War.  Their experiences are our history, and what we learn from their experiences is our future.

The nation was fascinated this past summer by the movie "Saving Private Ryan.”  We watched the movie silently with a renewed understanding of the sacrifices all those in military service must be prepared to make; and the sacrifices millions of veterans have lived through to keep America strong and free. The film's relentless and brutal images brought war home to all of us, including the many who have not been required to serve.  It stimulated many veterans to tell their war stories for the first time, knowing that people could now envision their experience in a different way.

Many of us know people who lost their lives in conflict and others who lived to tell us of their experiences.  On this Veterans Day we will listen to and hear our veterans' stories.  The Vietnam and Gulf Wars were different from World War II – and yet not so different.  None of the stories is easy to listen to and they are far from easy to tell.  But they make up the story of a free country – of people willing to pay the highest price to preserve peace and freedom.  Learning and teaching their stories and the histories of their experiences will help us to go more peacefully into the next century.

We live in Whatcom County in peace.  I recently returned from Israel and more greatly appreciate the meaning of peace and freedom from fear.

As you know, WWU observes Veteran’s Day during the workday on November 11.  While this enables more people to gather at an event like this, some believe that we should demonstrate more consideration and make the day a holiday.  You may know that from 1968 to 1978, Veterans’ Day was moved around to accomplish a three-day weekend.  On reflection, the day was returned to November 11 -- Armistice Day -- to recapture the meaning of the founding event.  Twenty years later, the time has come for us to review how best to celebrate the efforts of our members of the armed services.  I will appoint a committee of faculty, staff and students to begin the discussion.