Honoring those who have served:
Like most holidays, a flower is connected with it. For Veterans Day, the most popular symbol of observance is a poppy. This federal holiday takes place every year on November 11th. Often times, many people confuse it with Memorial Day (which takes place in May), but there is quite a difference between these two days.
Memorial Day is meant to honor those who have passed away while serving in the military, while Veterans Day (Today) is meant to honor the service of all of our U.S. military veterans.
Red poppy flowers and wreaths are placed at war memorials and many people wear small artificial poppies on their clothing (usually on one or both of these days) to commemorate those who have fought, fallen, or both. This symbol dates back to the early 1920s when it was adopted as The American Legion Family’s memorial flower. Today the red poppy continues to remain an iconic symbol of honor for the sacrifice that our veterans have made.
Facts About the Day:
- It is “Veterans Day,” Not Veterans’ or Veteran’s Day.
- Veterans Day originated as “Armistice Day“. – which commemorated the first anniversary of the end of WWI back on Nov. 11, 1919.
- It honors all of those who have served our country – dead or alive, unlike Memorial Day, which is a time to remember those who gave their lives for our country (particularly in a battle or from wounds they received in one)
- The date was changed for a while – confusing people. It was ultimately changed to November 11th (every year, no matter what day of the week it falls on).
- World War I armistice was signed on the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month.
