President Woodrow Wilson honored the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: “To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country's service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…"
In 1954, Congress, at the urging of the veterans service organizations, struck out the word "Armistice" and inserted the word "Veterans." With the approval of this legislation on June 1, 1954, Nov. 11 became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.
Banks, city, state and federal offices are closed on Veterans Day.
• Greer State Bank customers who are veterans are being presented with gift bags at all its branches today. The bank closes at 5 p.m.
Local observances:
Chandler Creek Elementary School
Chandler Creek Elementary School will honor veterans Wednesday with a free lunch. Veterans will come at different times between 10:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. Students in each of the classes asked veterans they knew to come in and have lunch with them.
Greenville Health System
Greenville Health System is hosting its annual Veterans Day Ceremony on Wednesday at 11 a.m. outside of the main entrance to Greenville Memorial Hospital.
The community and all veterans are invited to attend. A live stream of the event will be available at ghs.org/live.
Furman University
Two Vietnam combat veterans and authors J. L. Bud Alley, and James T. Lawrence, will speak Thursday at 7 p.m. in Watkins Room of the Trone Student Center on the Furman University campus.
The event, "The Agony of Vietnam: A Discussion With Two Combat Veterans," is free and open to the public. The discussion is sponsored by The Friends of the Furman University Libraries and the Furman Department of History.