2026 Shelter IslandVeterans Day Featured Address

Karen Sibert Haddy is a retired anesthesiologist and a veteran of the U.S. Army Reserve. Dr. Haddy is currently treasurer of the Island’s Legion Auxiliary. She spoke Wednesday at Veterans Day ceremonies in the Center.

It is truly a privilege to speak with you, to honor all the veterans among us here today as well as those who have gone before.

It’s easy to confuse Veterans Day and Memorial Day. There’s a lot of red, white and blue involved in both! But they’re actually very different in how they started and what they mean. 

Memorial Day started during the years after the Civil War as people wanted to honor the graves of fallen soldiers. We observe it the same way today on the last Monday in May to remember those who have sacrificed their lives for our country. 

Veterans Day is more recent. Back in 1918, on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, President Woodrow Wilson signed the armistice, or peace treaty, between the Allied nations and Germany, putting an end to World War I. Nov. 11 started to be celebrated as Armistice Day. Congress changed the name in 1954 from Armistice Day to Veterans Day to honor all U.S. veterans from peacetime as well as war. 

So today is a day when we honor not only the dead but all our living veterans as well. We say thank you to Commander Zack Mundy and all the members of the Shelter Island American Legion. We remember people like my father-in-law, George Haddy, a paratrooper in the 101st Airborne division. George landed behind enemy lines in France on D-Day, fought in the Battle of the Bulge, and helped liberate Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest retreat in the Alps — as well as a lot of what was in Hitler’s wine cellar! George lived to tell the tale, which is how my husband Steve Haddy is here with us today.

On a less dramatic note, we honor the service men and women who serve in other ways — those who launder the uniforms and cook the meals and swab the decks. Not every hero holds a weapon.

But even as we honor them today, it’s important for us to remember that our veterans need more from us than a free breakfast on Veterans Day and some kind words. Things are certainly better today than they were after the Vietnam War, when many veterans returned home to suffer scorn and abuse from their fellow Americans. But that doesn’t mean that today’s veterans are doing just fine. Too many of them are not. On average, 18 American veterans commit suicide every day. 

Last year, the US government laid off employees and reduced staff on a massive scale. About 62,000 veterans lost their jobs as a result. 13,000 of them were serving in the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The VA lost a total of nearly 28,000 employees, or 6% of their staff. These cuts included nearly 3,000 nurses, over 1,000 physicians, over 1,000 psychologists and social workers, and 1,800 staff people who processed veterans’ claims for benefits. The loss of morale in the VA has been huge, and it will take a long time to undo all the damage. 

For many veterans, if they can’t access health care through the VA system, they depend on Medicaid, and guess what? Medicaid is undergoing huge budget cuts as well. 

Disabled veterans are going to get a 3.6% cost-of-living increase in their benefits on December 1, but that isn’t going to come close to meeting the rising cost of groceries and fuel. The Long Island Cares Food Bank in Hampton Bays is having a drive right now for the benefit of hungry East End veterans and their families — it’s awful to think of veterans having food insecurity but they can and they do.

There is a lot we can do. The Legion Auxiliary exists for no other reason than to help veterans and their families. Join us. As of this year we can accept men as members too — so if you’re not a veteran yourself but your father or grandfather or wife or son or daughter is — please think about becoming an Auxiliary member!  

Other things we can all do — we can give to our local food banks, and volunteer to help. Spend some time at the Northport VA Hospital or the Long Island State Veterans Home in Stony Brook.

Our veterans have risked everything for us. Let’s remember them every day — not just today.

Here are some photos from Veterans Day ceremonies in the Center, Nov. 11, 2026: