[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 97 (Wednesday, May 20, 2015)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 29199-29200]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-12446]
Presidential Documents
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 97 / Wednesday, May 20, 2015 /
Presidential Documents
[[Page 29199]]
Proclamation 9283 of May 15, 2015
Armed Forces Day, 2015
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
At the heart of our Nation is the idea that we are each
endowed with certain unalienable rights. We hold this
truth to be self-evident, but from the moment a small
band of patriots first came together to declare
independence, we have never believed it to be self-
executing. From Lexington and Concord to Iraq and
Afghanistan, brave women and men have fought to defend
the blessings of liberty and freedom and to protect the
way of life we cherish. On Armed Forces Day, we salute
the unbroken chain of Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen,
Marines, and Coast Guardsmen who have continuously
secured and renewed the promise of our Nation.
This year, as we celebrate the 70th anniversary of the
end of World War II, we honor the generation that
triumphed over tyranny and laid a foundation for peace
around the world. In the face of oppression, more than
16 million Americans left everything they knew and
everyone they loved to fight for freedom far from home.
Today, this legacy of extraordinary service is carried
forward by patriots who protect the same liberties our
parents and grandparents fought for. Year after year,
tour after tour, the members of our Armed Forces serve
with honor and distinction. Their sacrifice makes our
Nation more free and more safe, and in their example,
we see the best of America.
As we pay tribute to today's servicemen and women, we
acknowledge the obligations we have to all who serve in
our name. This sacred trust requires that we fulfill
our promise and guarantee that these patriots, and the
families who serve alongside them, have all the
resources and benefits they have earned and deserve--
supporting them as they carry out their missions and
ensuring they get their shot at the American dream they
helped to defend. As a Nation, we are called to
recognize the enormous debt of gratitude we owe the
members of our Armed Forces, and we must never forget
those who laid down their lives to safeguard our
freedoms, or their loved ones who carry their legacies
forward.
Today and every day, let us celebrate the women and men
who make our military the greatest fighting force the
world has ever known. As a grateful Nation, let us show
our appreciation by working to uphold the values they
protect every day and by continuing to strive to build
a country worthy of their enormous sacrifice.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the
United States of America, and Commander in Chief of the
Armed Forces of the United States, continuing the
precedent of my predecessors in office, do hereby
proclaim the third Saturday of each May as Armed Forces
Day. I direct the Secretary of Defense on behalf of the
Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps, and the
Secretary of Homeland Security on behalf of the Coast
Guard, to plan for appropriate observances each year,
with the Secretary of Defense responsible for
encouraging the participation and cooperation of civil
authorities and private citizens.
I invite the Governors of the United States and its
Territories, and appropriate officials of all units of
government, to provide for the observance of Armed
Forces Day within their jurisdiction each year in an
appropriate manner
[[Page 29200]]
designed to increase public understanding and
appreciation of the Armed Forces of the United States.
I also invite veterans, civic leaders, and
organizations to join in the observance of Armed Forces
Day.
Finally, I call upon all Americans to display the flag
of the United States at their homes on Armed Forces
Day, and I urge citizens to learn more about military
service by attending and participating in the local
observances of the day. I also encourage Americans to
volunteer at organizations that provide support to our
troops and their families.
Proclamation 9129 of May 16, 2014, is hereby
superseded.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
fifteenth day of May, in the year of our Lord two
thousand fifteen, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and thirty-ninth.
(Presidential Sig.)
[FR Doc. 2015-12446
Filed 5-19-15; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F5