Editor’s Note. The following letter, authored by Dan Williams, paid tribute to Veterans Day and those who have served our country, often making the ultimate sacrifice. Veterans Day was celebrated on Monday, Nov. 11 and was capped by several signature events in Woodland Park and Cripple Creek. See mountainjackpot.com for more coverage of local Veterans Day celebrations.
Veterans Day 2024 is here. By the time you read this our country will have chosen a president and the hard work of rebuilding relationships in our communities will have begun. “A house divided cannot stand” and Veterans will have a big part to play in putting ‘humpty dumpty back together again”. Afterall, it is our Veterans who fought for the freedom we enjoy, to include to have elections to choose who will lead us into a very uncertain future. Whoever the next president is, as the commander in chief inheriting two major wars, it is certain that new Veterans will be created during the next presidential term. This time, most of us will be sending our children off to war. Veterans Day is worthy of your time, thought, and thanks.
Veterans Day is a U.S. holiday dedicated to American veterans of all wars. In 1918, on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, was declared between the Allied nations and Germany in World War I, then known as “the Great War.” In 1954 the 83rd U.S. Congress changed the 1938 act that had made Armistice Day a holiday, replacing the word “Armistice” with “Veterans.”
This year, please thank those Veterans in your life that you know while you still can. I have said goodbye personally to far too many Veterans in my own life this year. Veterans Day is a day specially set aside to show appreciation for their sacrifices and service. Far too many of our Veterans are still leaving our ranks unappreciated, unrecognized, suffering PTSD and TBI and asking if what they once did was worth the sacrifice to their health and families.
The number of Veterans in our country is dwindling rapidly. The last US census showed the number of Veterans in the United States declined by a third, from 26.4 million Veterans to 18 million between 2000 and 2018. Today there are 17 million Veterans alive from all the wars the US has participated in. The share of the U.S. population with military experience has also declined. In 1980 for example, about 18% of U.S. adults were Veterans, but that share fell to just 5% in 2024. Active-duty service members now comprise less than 1% of all U.S. adults.
As an example, in 2024 there were only 119,000 WWII Veterans left with on average 131 dying each day. The greatest generation, who saw 12% of our population serving and who changed the world, is nearly gone.
There are now 619,000 Vietnam Veterans who “were boots on the ground” still alive of the 6.3 Veterans who served in that war.
Teller County has a Veteran population of 20%, comprised of both male and female Veterans. Many of them serve in our city and county government. They serve in our sheriffs and police departments, and they serve in many of our non-profit organizations. They own our small businesses and they are often your neighbors. There is a good chance that you know one and hold that relationship dear. This year, take the time to thank them for the time in their life that they put country ahead of self. Thank them for their personal service and the sacrifice of their families and themselves. Take time to listen to them and if so moved, give them a hug; these days we could all use one.
Dan Williams is a retired US Army Colonel, Apache Pilot, and multiple combat veteran. He is the District 1 County Commissioner and lives with his wife, Suzan, also a retired Colonel and Army Nurse, on their ranch near Cripple Creek.
