[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]


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  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