By Mike Finney

Many organizations and businesses throughout Delaware will take the time to stop, salute and honor members of the U.S. armed forces with Veterans Day services Thursday.

Whether it’s a free dinner at a local restaurant or a simple “Thank you for your service,” Dave Skocik, president of the Delaware Veterans Coalition, said it is a cherished time for veterans.

“Veterans cannot be separated by conflict served, branch of service, gender or age,” Mr. Skocik said. “The words ‘duty, honor, country,’ spoken by a fellow veteran or family member, results in an involuntary stiffening of the spine as their hearts fill with pride.

“Whether hearty or in failing health, they treasure hearing, ‘Thank you for your service.’”
American Legion Walter L. Fox Post 2, at 835 S. Bay Road in Dover, will be honoring all who served with a ceremony Thursday.

The event will start at 11 a.m., as Chief Master Sgt. Julie Marie-Haskell Dieterlen, who has 37 years’ service, gives the keynote address.

At present, Sgt. Dieterlen is serving as the chief enlisted manager/Air Reserve technician for the 512th Memorial Affairs Squadron at Dover Air Force Base.

She is responsible for the 100-member organization, which supports the Department of Defense’s only port mortuary with an Air Force Reserve-unique team, providing global contingency mortuary response in support of Air Force and combatant command requirements.

Prior to the service, the post will open its doors at 9 and offer free breakfast to all veterans and active-duty U.S. military personnel.

Breakfast will include scrambled eggs, waffles, hash browns, grits, bacon, sausage, scrapple, assorted fruits, toast, coffee and orange juice. Mimosas and bloody marys will be available for a low cost.

For information, contact Post 2 at 302-943-2583.

AMC Museum to open new POW/MIA exhibit

The Air Mobility Command Museum, adjacent to Dover AFB, is set to open a new POW/MIA exhibit during a dedication ceremony Thursday morning at 9:30.

The exhibit, called “Chair of Honor,” will feature an unoccupied C-5M Super Galaxy pilot’s seat honoring those who are prisoners of war or missing in action.

The empty seat symbolizes that there will be a place in the museum awaiting their return.

The ceremony will include guest speaker Ralph Galati, a former Vietnam War POW.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, this event is limited to invitation only.

Contact the museum at 302-677-5938 or eduamcmuseum@gmail.com for more information.

Veterans deserve to be ‘honored and remembered’

There are around 19 million U.S. veterans as of this year, according to data from the Department of Veterans Affairs, a number that represents less than 10% of the total U.S. adult population.

In 2018, about 7% of U.S. adults were veterans, down from 18% in 1980, according to the Census Bureau. The drop coincides with decreases in active-duty personnel.

Gulf War-era military members now account for the largest share of all U.S. veterans, having surpassed those of the Vietnam era in 2016, according to VA’s 2018 population model estimates.

VA numbers for 2021 indicate there are 5.9 million American veterans who served during the Vietnam era and 7.8 million who served in the Gulf War era, which spans from August 1990 through the present.

There are also around 240,000 World War II veterans and about 933,000 who served during the Korean conflict, according to VA.

No matter where or when the veterans served, they deserve to be celebrated, Mr. Skocik said.

“It is in our interest to honor and remember them and their families, not only on Veterans Day but always,” he said. “Though they represent only a small percent of our numbers, they and those who follow them are our protectors.”