Press Release

U.S. Mission Closed November 11 to Honor Veterans

November 10, 2008

The U.S. Mission in Dar es Salaam will be closed on Tuesday, November 11, 2008, for observance of the U.S. Veterans Day holiday. All offices, including the visa section, USAID, Peace Corps and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will resume operations on Wednesday, November 12, 2008.

Veterans Day is a federal holiday observed to honor American veterans of all wars for their patriotism, love of the country and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good. In the United States, parades, ceremonies and tributes to veterans are planned throughout the country to honor those who have served in the U.S. military.

This year marks the 15th anniversary of the Vietnam Women’s Memorial, and will be the focus of the annual Veteran’s Day ceremony at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington.

Last year President George W. Bush stated in his Veterans Day Proclamation, “In times of war and of peace, our men and women in uniform stepped forward to defend their fellow citizens and the country they love.” He said, “Our veterans held fast against determined and ruthless enemies and helped save the world from tyranny and terror. They ensured that America remained what our founders meant her to be: a light to the nations, spreading the good news of human freedom to the darkest corners of the earth.”

President Bush added, “Veterans Day is dedicated to the extraordinary Americans who protected our freedom in years past, and to those who protect it today. They represent the very best of our Nation. Every Soldier, Sailor, Airman, Marine, and Coast Guardsman has earned the lasting gratitude of the American people, and their service and sacrifice will be remembered forever. In the words of Abraham Lincoln: " . . . let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the Nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle . . . ." On this Veterans Day, I ask all Americans to express their appreciation to our Nation's veterans.”

Veterans Day was originally called Armistice Day to recall the end of the First World War, when on the 11th of November at 11 o'clock in 1918, the guns fell silent after a devastating war that transformed American society. The holiday acquired its present name and broadened significance in the U.S. on November 11, 1954, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a bill proclaiming November 11 as Veterans Day, to honor all of the men and women who had served the United States in combat.