“Each November 11 we remember those who answered the call when America was most in need.  Honoring our veterans reminds us that our freedoms come at a cost and with liberty comes responsibility.

We will soon welcome home a new generation of veterans who have valiantly served in Iraq and Afghanistan.   We must do all we can to make sure these brave men and women receive the veterans benefits we promised them when they enlisted. 

As the federal deficit continues to increase, some have proposed curtailing the benefits of our veterans.  In fact, I have worked with my colleagues to stop cuts in veterans’ benefits for the past two years.  If anything, we should be working to increase veterans’ benefits.  We need a new GI Bill for the 21st Century.   

In 1944, Congress enacted the original GI Bill of Rights, providing veterans with educational benefits, loans to buy a home, and medical assistance. A new GI Bill should expand existing veterans benefits by increasing funding for veterans’ medical care, providing employment assistance for homeless veterans, and increasing pay for active-duty military personnel,

As the years go by, we lose more and more of our veterans.  Each veteran has a valuable story to tell, and future generations must hear these stories, even after the teller is gone.

In 2000, I helped pass legislation creating the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress. The Veterans History Project is collecting interviews with veterans and is seeking items such as their letters and photographs for a national collection. 

This Veteran’s Day, I encourage you to participate in the Veteran’s History Project.  You can take part in this important project by interviewing a war veteran and bringing their stories to my office.  I will personally present them to the Library of Congress, where they will be preserved and become part of the Library’s permanent collection.  There are valuable lessons to be learned in our veteran’s stories; lessons that will ensure future generations of Americans will never take their freedom and liberties for granted.

For more information and to receive a project kit, contact my office at (516)739-3008 or visit the Veterans History Project website (www.loc.gov/folklife/vets/).  I hope everyone takes this opportunity to be a part of this important initiative to preserve the stories of our nation’s war veterans.”