In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie,

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

John McCrae, a Canadian lieutenant colonel, wrote the words to “In Flanders Field” the day after witnessing the death of a friend on a World War I battlefield, and they are now used during many Veterans Day ceremonies to mark the service and sacrifice of servicemen and women.

With around 850 World War II veterans dying every day, and their median age in the late 80s, those Veterans Day events have taken on a sense of urgency. Even as the memory of that conflict fades, the men and women who won the war deserve respect and admiration, even if they don’t particularly want it.

“We were just young men doing our best in impossible situations,” said James Watson, 93, of South Portland, who survived the Pearl Harbor attacks while stationed on the U.S.S. Phoenix.

It is also important on this Veterans Day, coming less than a week after a presidential election, that we also remember the plight of the country’s newest veterans. On any given night, there are 67,000 homeless veterans, with twice that total annually experiencing homelessness at some point, according to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans. Two-thirds of vets served the country for at least three years, one-third in a war zone.

They are often driven to homelessness by substance abuse and mental illness that have roots in the conflicts in which they served. Access to health care and other services are crucial for these veterans. In most cases, programs that allow veterans to help other veterans, particularly on a local basis, work the best, and that is a model that should be followed.

The country is also falling short in helping veterans find employment following service. For years, recruiters have pitched the military as a place where young men and women can learn the trades that would serve them well in civilian life. However, as of May, the unemployment rate was 12.7 percent among veterans, as compared to 7.7 percent for nonveterans. For veterans age 18-24, the rate was 23.5 percent.

The top obstacle, studies say, is showing civilian employers how military skills translate back home. Veterans often have marketable training that is not obvious on their job applications. Soldiers who entered the Army at 18 may not have a college degree, but if they have managed a warehouse with millions of dollars in supplies or been responsible for the command of other troops, there is value to that experience. The military should expand the programs that help veterans properly build resumes that reflect that.

Ben Bragdon, managing editor

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