Juneau residents honored and remembered veterans during an observance held Wednesday at Centennial Hall.
Veterans Day used to be called Armistice Day prior to World War II, and is observed during the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, the moment when hostilities ceased during World War I.
“The positive values of veterans were needed in the past, they are needed today, and they will be needed in our future,” said Chaplain Major Kirk Thorsteinson of the Alaska Army National Guard to those attending the Veterans Day observance.
Thorsteinson told of the many core values important to all of the service branches: honor, courage, loyalty, commitment, duty, integrity and selfless service.
“Each of the branches has core values, that when adopted benefits the service member, their unit, their family, their friends and their community. These values are lived 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and they are values that we should continue to demonstrate as we transition out of uniform,” Thorsteinson said. “Our nation celebrates us today for our service. May they also celebrate us for what we continue to offer to those around us for the rest of our lives.”
Thorsteinson told the story of Robert Norman Ross and Carlos Ray Norris, two veterans whose values and experiences in the U.S. Air Force carried over into their life outside of the service. Ross, who disliked screaming and yelling during his posting at Eielson Air Force Base, later became known as Bob Ross, the calm television painter whose mistakes always became “happy accidents.” Norris, who jumped on a live grenade and threw it back to the enemy, later became known as the martial artist Chuck Norris whose roundhouse kicks always punctuated his television and movie appearances.
Listen to Chaplain Major Kirk Thorsteinson of the Alaska Army National Guard deliver his address during Wednesday’s Veterans Day observance:
Thorsteinson also briefly described the story of four U.S. Army chaplains aboard the World War II troop ship S.S. Dorchester. The Methodist minister, rabbi, Dutch Reform minister and Catholic priest put their differences aside and jointly provided religious support and comfort to GIs aboard the ship. When the ship was torpedoed off Greenland, Thorsteinson said all four chaplains helped soldiers board life boats and gave away their life vests. The four chaplains linked arms, prayed, and sang hymns as they went down with the ship.
“The powerful testimony from the Dorchester survivors shows the power our lives and values have in the eyes of others, and that it is better to die living out our values than to live a full life devoid of them,” Thorsteinson said.
“Our shared veteran experience in values uniquely allow us to acknowledge our differences, unite together, and then find solutions.”
During Wednesday morning’s observance organized by the American Legion Auke Bay Post 25, Sara Radke sang the “Star Spangled Banner” while the group Capital Brass provided the musical accompaniment.
Alaska’s veterans by the numbers
By Liz Ruskin, APRN, and Zachariah Hughes, KSKA
For Veterans Day, we’ve drawn a statistical portrait of Alaska veterans using figures from the Census Bureau.
Alaska veterans earn more than vets in any other state. The median income of Alaska vets is $51,060. That’s a lot higher than the nationwide median vet income of $37,000. Also, the unemployment rate among Alaska vets is lower than among vets nationwide.
Alaska doesn’t have the most vets. Our 70,000 is a drop in the bucket compared to a big state like California or Florida. But nearly 14 percent of Alaska’s adult population has served in the military — the highest rate in the nation.
Our vets are also younger. More than half served since the first Gulf War. Nationwide, about a quarter of the veterans are from that period.
