ROTC units stand vigil in observance of Veterans Day

Beginning 5 p.m. Tuesday and lasting until the same time on Wednesday, units from the Notre Dame Airforce, Navy and Army ROTC will commemorate Veterans Day by standing vigil at the Clarke Memorial Fountain, known colloquially as “Stonehenge,” according to a University press release. “Cadets and midshipmen from the three ROTC units will stand guard at each of the fountain’s four corners from 5 p.m. Tuesday (Nov. 10) until the Veterans Day ceremony at 5 p.m. Wednesday (Nov. 11),” the release stated. The release stated the 24-hour vigil is a traditional event, held by Notre Dame ROTC units each year on Veterans Day — the anniversary of the signing of the armistice that ended World War I. “Veterans Day is celebrated every year on Nov. 11 to commemorate the armistice signed at Compiègne, France, that ended World War I on that day in 1918,” the release stated. “The guns fell silent at 11 that morning, ‘eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month’ of the year. “Traditionally, two consecutive minutes of silence were observed at 11 a.m. local time in memory of some 20 million people who died in the war, and of those who survived them.” According to the press release, the ceremony following the vigil will last 30 minutes and will include an address to the entire corps by Notre Dame class of 1966 alumnus and veteran James W. Wagenbach. “The public is invited to pay their respects during the vigil and to attend the ceremony, which will be standing room only,” the release stated.