“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died.
Rather we should thank God that such men lived.”
— General George S. Patton

“Out of suffering have
emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.”
— Kahlil Gibran (poet)
A Prayer for Our Veterans
By Joanna Fuchs (poet)

Dear Lord, today we honor our veterans, worthy men and women who gave
their best when they were called upon to serve and protect their country.

We pray that you will bless them for their unselfish service in the continual
struggle to preserve our freedoms, our safety, and our country’s heritage, for all of us.

Bless them abundantly for the hardships they faced, for the sacrifices they made for their many different contributions to America’s victories over tyranny and oppression.

We respect them, we thank them, we honor them, we are proud of them. We pray that you will watch over these special people and bless them with peace and happiness.
One-on-One with Our Sisters
Thoughts and reflections as, today, we remember our Veterans.

“Veterans Day is so important to those in the military. In the Second World War, I had four brothers and two brothers-in-law serving in the Air Force, the Navy and Merchant Marine. Every night, our family at home prayed the Rosary for their safety. All six came home safely.”
— Sister Cecilia Jacko
“My father served in World War II and was present in Japan right after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He never spoke of either to us until I was already a Sister and one of our Sisters was doing research on the effects of nuclear war. He then pulled out an album he had that contained photos he had taken of the aftermath of the bombing. He spoke about the devastation and the horrors that he experienced. It took him all those years to even be able to tell anyone about it, although he had been haunted by it. My dad had always been my hero, but his hero status grew through this experience. Veterans Day for me is a day of gratitude to those who sacrificed for our freedom and a day to pray that no one ever needs to experience the horror of war again.”
— Sister Frances Marie Duncan


“My three uncles were in World War II, and another uncle who married my aunt also was in this war. My brother, Joe, was in the Korean Conflict. They all came home safely, thank God.”
— Sister Lois Jean DiFalco


“This is a very special day for me because my brother, Paul, served in the Korean War.”
— Sister Rosalia Giba
“My Uncle Lou, my mom’s younger brother, served as a paratrooper in World War II in the Philippines. He won a purple heart. When most children spend their childhood singing nursery rhymes, my siblings and I spent our days swinging on the back porch singing army songs — ‘From the Halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli; ... This is the Army, Mr. Jones ... no private rooms or telephones ...’”
— Sister Pat Marie Buranosky
“I thank God that my four brothers came home safely from the military. My brother, Mike, witnessed so much in Vietnam and came home a different person. I know that the prayers of all of us helped him to turn around and be the wonderful, good person that he is today. My seven cousins and my Uncle John are also veterans, and we thank God that they all came home okay. Now have a great nephew, Kyle, in the Air Force, and we pray for his safety as he flies military planes. May God bless all the military.”
— Sister Roselyn Kuzma
Voices for Our Veterans
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Mansions of the Lord
In this clip from 2018, the West Point Band and Glee Club perform Mansions of the Lord from the film We Were Soldiers.
Hymn for the Fallen
Also from 2018, students from Westlake High School in Austin, Texas, deliver a stirring, nuanced rendition of Hymn for the Fallen.