The Town of Herndon celebrated Veterans Day during a ceremony Monday at the Herndon Town Green that not only honored past and current veterans, but also touched upon what more the nation can do to take care of them.
The event started with a procession from the Herndon High School Jr. Naval ROTC Color Guard, and featured guest speakers Mayor Lisa Merkel, Congressman Gerry Connolly (D-VA-11), and Lt. Col. Kristina A. Young (Ret.).
Merkel, who comes from a family of veterans, was the first to speak. She noted that Herndon itself was named after a veteran—Cmd. William Lewis Herndon—and that the town is proud of its veterans.
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Connolly spoke next, touching upon many of the country’s current issues with regard to its veterans.
He noted that although there has been a 34-percent reduction in backlog at the Veterans Administration (VA), there are roughly 650,000 claims still to be dealt with.
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While strides have been made in veterans’ mental health, the country still needs to continue to recognize the severity of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and educate the general public about it, he said. According to the VA, at least one veteran per day is lost to suicide, he added.
“PTSD at least is now acknowledged. We’re trying to de-stigmatize it,” Connolly said. “The trauma of having been in war is real. We’ve come a long way from George Patton slapping a soldier because of his war trauma. It’s a real condition. It needs to be addressed, and our returning veterans must get the care they need so they can reintegrate into civil society.”
Connolly added that the recent government shutdown also had an adverse impact on the nation’s veterans. During the shutdown, many military benefits were frozen, including death benefits to families who lost family members to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
He also advocated for post-military employment for veterans, noting that many veterans in Fairfax County are either unemployed or homeless.
“We’ve got work to do,” Connolly said. “We as a community, we as a society, have an obligation to our veterans. They were there for us when we needed them. Now we need to be there for them now that they need us.”
Lt. Col. Young mirrored Connolly’s sentiments, but added that action cannot come from government alone.
“It’s a whole-of-country approach [that’s needed],” Young said. “If the community does not get involved in helping our veterans, then the government won’t.”
