On May 21 Armed Forces Day is a day to pay tribute to the men and women who serve the United States Armed Forces. The day is celebrated on the third Saturday in May and is part of Armed Forces Week.
It was with the idea for citizens to come together and thank our military members for their patriotic service in support of our country that President Harry S. Truman led the effort to establish this single holiday. The one-day celebration then stemmed from the unification of the Armed Forces under the Department of Defense. It was on August 31, 1949, that Secretary of Defense Louis Johnson announced the creation of an Armed Forces Day to replace separate Army, Navy, Marine Corps, U.S. Coast Guard and Air Force Days.
Parades, open houses, receptions and air shows were held to celebrate the first Armed Forces Day held on May 20, 1950.
1962 – President John F. Kennedy established Armed Forces Day as an official holiday.
The United States longest running city-sponsored Armed Forces Day Parade is held in Bremerton, Washington.
2012 – Bremerton celebrated the 64th year of the Armed Forces Day Parade.
National Medal of Honor Day on March 25th recognizes all Medal of Honor recipients.
On March 25, 1863, Secretary of War, Edwin Stanton presented the first Medals of Honor (Army) to six members of “Andrews Raiders” for their volunteering and participation during an American Civil War raid in April of 1862.
Created in 1861, the Medal of Honor is the United States of America’s highest military honor. It is awarded only to US military personnel by the President of the United States in the name of Congress for personal acts of valor above and beyond the call of duty.
There are three versions of the Medal of Honor; one for the Army, one for the Navy and one for the Air Force, with personnel of the Marine Corps and the Coast Guard receiving the Navy version. Will the Space Force receive the Air Force cersion?
Since its creation, there have been 3,468 Medals of Honor awarded to the country’s soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and coastguardsmen.
HOW TO OBSERVE #MedalOfHonorDay
Some federal, state, local, and military organizations may hold events recognizing Medal of Honor recipients. These events may be public or private. Other ways to participate include:
Volunteering for your local veteran organization
Donate to a veteran service organization
Adopt a Medal of Honor gravesite
Fly the U.S. flag at your home or business
Visit the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
Visit local memorial sites
Use #MedalOfHonorDay to post on social media.
NATIONAL MEDAL OF HONOR DAY HISTORY
In 1990, the United States Congress designated March 25th of each year as National Medal of Honor Day.
National Science Fiction Day promotes the celebration of science fiction as a genre, its creators, history, and various media, too. On January 2nd annually, millions of science fiction fans across the United States read and watch their favorites in science fiction.
The date of the celebration commemorates the birth of famed science fiction writer Isaac Asimov. An American author and Boston University professor of biochemistry, Isaac Asimov was born Isaak Yudovich Ozimov on January 2, 1920. He is best known for his works of science fiction and his popular science books. Isaac Asimov, whose works are followed by many, died on April 6, 1992.
National Science Fiction Day is recognized by the Hallmark Channel and the Scholastic Corporation.
Considered a master of hard science fiction, Asimov, along with Robert A. Heinlein and Arthur C. Clarke, was considered one of the “Big Three” science-fiction writers during his lifetime. Many regard the Foundation Series as Asimov’s most outstanding piece. His other major series are the Galactic Empire Series and the Robot Series.
Some of the successful television shows recognized by science fiction fans include Star Trek-The Next Generation,The X-Files,Battlestar Galactica, Doctor Who, and The Twilight Zone.
As we look back at some older science fiction in our current technology-infused world, how close do the writers come to imaging our futures? Long before Asimov created his first work, humans imagined machines that allowed them to soar like birds. Another man, Leonardo Di Vinci, looked to the future, too. He designed contraptions worthy of the science fiction in his time.
Science fiction impacts life in ways we may not even consider – even those who don’t enjoy reading or watching science fiction.
NATIONAL SCIENCE FICTION DAY HISTORY
Since at least 2011, science fiction lovers have been honoring Isaac Asimov and other science fiction contributors. In 2013, asimovs.com published a guest editorial by Ed Finn. The writer talks about doomsday predictions while also looking toward the future – all moving toward the true meaning of National Science Fiction Day. Read the complete article, Celebrate National Science Fiction Day by Learning to Live in the Future.
HOW TO OBSERVE #ScienceFictionDay
The day encourages reading or watching science fiction. However, consider exploring science fiction in other ways. For example:
Introduce science fiction to an entirely new generation. Offer to read excerpts from your favorite science fiction author to a youth group at a library.
Explore the authors of science fiction you’ve never read before.
Study the history of science fiction and how it has impacted modern culture.
Share your favorite science fiction story or character.
Navy Day on October 27th salutes all of the military personnel who have served, both past and present, in the United States Navy.
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy currently stands as the largest, most powerful navy in the world, with the highest combined battle fleet tonnage. The service engages over 340,000 personnel on active duty and more than 71,000 in the Navy Reserve.
Navy History
Throughout the Revolutionary War, the Navy’s importance grew. Today, the United States maintains 40 naval bases across the country, including the world’s largest Naval Station Norfolk, in Norfolk, Virginia.
Below the sea, submarines became a part of the Navy during World War II. While experiments began in the late 1800s and during the Civil War, they did not join a large part of the Navy inventory until World War II. At that point, subs became necessary for surveillance and rescue, even though they were also armed.
With the advent of the airplane, the Navy became vital stations for the Airforce as well. As a result, the Navy modified ships into floating landing strips. Today, joint Naval and Airbases such as Pearl Harbor-Hickam provided necessary fleets of the sea and air defense.
Theodore Roosevelt and the Navy
Between 1922 and 1972, the Navy celebrated its birthday on October 27th in honor of President Theodore Roosevelt’s birth. He elevated the U.S. Navy to a premier fighting force. During his term as Assistant Secretary of the Navy, he built up the power and strength of the U.S. Navy. Roosevelt’s pursuit of the naval aircraft advanced the U.S. Navy. As president, Roosevelt was the first president to submerge in a submarine and also the first to fly. His support of the Navy led the former Secretary of the Navy, John F. Lehman, to say, Theodore Roosevelt, “was one of the architects of our modern Navy.”
The Navy League of the United States organized the first Navy Day in 1922, choosing October 27th to honor the birth of President Theodore Roosevelt.
Navy Day received particular attention from President Warren Harding. Harding wrote to the Secretary of the Navy Edwin Denby:
“Thank you for your note which brings assurance of the notable success which seems certain to attend the celebration of Navy Day on Friday, October 27, in commemoration of past and present services of the Navy. From our earliest national beginnings, the Navy has always been and deserved to be an object of special pride to the American people. Its record is indeed one to inspire such sentiments, and I am very sure that such a commemoration as is planned will be a timely reminder.”
In 1949, the Department of Defense Secretary Louis A. Johnson directed the United States Navy’s participation on Armed Forces Day in May. Although, as a civilian organization, the Navy League was not affected by this directive and continued to organize Navy Day celebrations as before.
Then, in the 1970s the “birthday” of the Continental Navy was found to be October 13, 1775. CNO Admiral Elmo R. Zumwalt worked with the Navy League to define October 13th as the new date of Navy Day. However, Navy Day in the United States remains primarily recognized as October 27th.
Recognize Naval service members and their dedication to their country. Visit a Naval museum to learn more about the Navy’s history. Discover more about naval training, the types of ships in our fleets, and where they sail around the world. Use #NavyDay to post on social media.
August is International Peace Month and a time to reflect on the First World War. On August 16, 1926, TIME Magazine wrote: “At Rheims, martyred memorial city of World War destruction, 4,000 pacifists from 30 countries assembled last week for the Fifth International Democratic Peace Conference. Nine hundred of the delegates were young Germans, representing almost every German city. At the first session, the present month of August 1926, was proclaimed “international peace month,” the delegates voting to encamp in tents upon the onetime World War battlefields of France through Aug. 29, ‘in order to pursue an intensive study of international peace work.’”
International Peace Month was born of a series of tragic miscalculations, the war killed millions and ravaged Europe on a scale once considered unthinkable. The war not only set the stage for a century of violence and conflict but forever altered the human mindset, ushering in an age of cynicism, fatalism and lowered expectations for the future. As memory of the war recedes, it’s increasingly important that we educate new generations about the horrors of that conflict and learn whatever lessons we can, so we may not repeat the mistakes that led to the Great War.
“Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” – George Santayan
Many books have been written about the Great War. We have combined a reading list to help understand the era and how soldiers and families came to terms with the outcome.
Paths of Glory by Humphrey Cobb is a novel about corruption and injustice in the military. This piece of literature later became the basis for Stanley Kubrick’s classic film Paths of Glory.
Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo is a graphic look at the horrors of war told through the perspective of one soldier, the ultimate victim.
HISTORY International Peace Month was founded on August 16, 1926, at the Democratic Peace Conference in Germany. In commemoration of the month, delegates, mostly of German descent, voted to encamp in tents upon the battlefields of France through August 29th.
Study the history of the Great War, i.e., World War I. Learn about the worldwide devastation that led to the declaration of International Peace Month. Never let the world forget the devastating effects of the war. Use #InternationalPeaceMonth in social media correspondence.
