Category Events
How CalVet Ensures that California Veterans are the Most Connected, Protected, and Respected Veterans in the Nation
Veterans Day is our annual national day of gratitude for those who have defended our country and our Constitution. But at CalVet, thanking veterans is a year-round, continuous honor, duty, and privilege. In fact, is it our vision that California’s veterans become the nation’s most connected, most protected, and most respected veterans, and this happens […]
Honoring Legacy: A CalVet Staff Member’s Commitment to Veterans Inspired by Family Military Service
Stories of service that resonate. Stories that inspire. Stories that move us. Many such stories are shared on America’s back porches, in living rooms and, on occasion, around campfires in the woods. Or they are not told at all, which speaks volumes about the impacts of war some veterans experienced. Keith Smothers said the stories […]
Of Medals and Mettle: Marine Veteran’s Hardware Back Home Nine Years After Theft
With Veterans Day approaching, a Southern California resident went above and beyond the call of duty to show his respect and gratitude to a Marine veteran. Here’s how: One mid-September day, Oceanside resident Greg Workman took his two Great Danes — eight-year-old Guinness and one-year-old Gus — for a walk.
California’s First Fourth of July Celebration Predated Statehood
All across America, people in cities big and small will celebrate the nation’s 247th birthday this week with parades, picnics, parties, and patriotism. Old Glory, fireworks, food, and fun, and it’s been that way since 1777—when the first event took place in Philadelphia a year after the Declaration of Independence was, well, declared. But who […]
MISSING IN ACTION BUT ALWAYS IN OUR HEARTS: THE SEARCH CONTINUES
As Memorial Day approaches, families will plan to gather at consecrated grounds— such as Arlington National Military Cemetery in Virginia. In California, they will visit any one of the 14 national or military cemeteries up and down the state, including CalVet’s cemeteries at Igo, Yountville, and Seaside. It is the day each year where we […]
MAY A MONTH OF REMEMBRANCE FOR THREE-WAR VET AT REDDING HOME
May is a month of remembrances for 96-year-old U.S. Navy veteran Don Windle. On May 5, 1944, the Navy launched his ship, the USS Aaron Ward (DM-34), a destroyer minelayer commissioned in October of that year. On May 3, 1945, two days shy of a year of its launching and during its first and only […]
GI FILM FESTIVAL SAN DIEGO BRINGS WAR, ITS AFTERMATH, AND VETERANS INTO FOCUS
Films that depict heroism and sacrifice. Films about tragedy, redemption, forgiveness, and understanding. Films that address the mental health issues many veterans face daily. Films about veterans, many made by veterans, and told through the words of veterans. The 2023 GI Film Festival San Diego will offer all of the above when it begins its […]
VETERANS DAY IN THE BOOKS? AT CALVET, EVERY DAY IS A NEW PAGE WHEN IT COMES TO SERVING THEM
The parades and picnics are over. Speeches made and proclamations read. The American flags that lined the streets throughout the country and California are neatly folded, stored until the next national holiday. Veterans Day – America’s annual day of thanking veterans for defending this country and the freedoms our Constitution guarantees – is in the […]
GO AHEAD, MAKE MY VETERANS DAY: WHEN FORT ORD WAS A SPRINGBOARD TO HOLLYWOOD
From World War I through the first Gulf War, Fort Ord was a U.S. Army base known for producing soldiers. Today, it is home to CalVet’s California Central Coast Veterans Cemetery and also to Cal State University-Monterey Bay, among other things. For a few years in the early 1950s, however, the outpost on the Monterey […]
CALVET’S VETERANS DAY POSTER DEFINES OUR MISSION AND PURPOSE
As a nation, we rely upon our armed forces to protect and defend the Constitution and the rights and freedoms it guarantees. Our servicemembers risk their lives for the reward of maintaining our democracy; even putting this solemn duty ahead of their own wellbeing, families, and loved ones. Yet, over the decades, veterans have had […]
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