DECATUR -- Today the nation celebrates Veterans Day, a time when we as Americans remember all the men and women who sacrificed and died in the defense of freedom around the world. It is very important that our youth know what it means to be a veteran and the service they performed as soldiers.

Decatur High School, as many schools throughout the region, are honoring our nation's military by holding a Veterans Day assembly at Peterson Gym in Decatur Nov. 11 at 11 a.m. All area veterans and family members, as well as the general public are invited to attend this event.

The high school will have military artifacts and photographs on display in the vestibule of Peterson Gym, as well as the lobby of the high school.

On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, an armistice agreement was signed by Allied forces and Germany, creating a cessation of hostilities between the warring nations. On June 28, 1919, the treaty of Versailles was signed, ending World War I, "the war to end all wars."

A few months later, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed Nov. 11 the first Armistice Day. On May 13, 1938, Congress passed an act that established Nov. 11 as a legal holiday. Sixteen years later, on June 1 1954, at the urging of the veterans administration, the 1938 Act was amended to change the name from Armistice Day to Veterans Day in order to include service men and women from World War II and Korea.

For more information on the Decatur High School Veterans Day assembly, go to decatursd.com or 752-3983.