A bipartisan resolution sponsored on Oct. 27 by U.S. Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) would designate Oct. 26 as the Day of the Deployed to recognize the more than two million individuals who serve in the U.S. Armed Forces, including active duty and the reserve components.
“Freedom isn’t free, and the Day of the Deployed is a reminder of the courage and sacrifice it takes to protect our country,” Sen. Hoeven said on Monday. “Every year on Oct. 26, we recognize the men and women who leave the comforts of home to serve, and the families who support them with strength and dedication.”
Sen. Hoeven introduced Senate Resolution 468 alongside four original cosponsors, including U.S. Sens. Steve Daines (R-MT) and Raphael Warnock (D-GA) to remember and honor the bravery and sacrifice of the men and women who are, or who have been deployed, on behalf of the Armed Forces.
Currently, several hundred thousand members of the Armed Forces are now serving overseas in every region of the world, according to the text of the resolution, and in the decades following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, members of the Armed Forces have deployed in two major conflicts and countless operations throughout the world to help protect the United States from further terrorist attacks.
The resolution, if enacted, would resolve that the U.S. Senate honors the deployed members of the Armed Forces and their families; calls on Americans to reflect on the service of those members of the Armed Forces, wherever they serve, past, present, and future; and encourages Americans to observe the Day of the Deployed with appropriate ceremonies and activities, the text says.
As a former governor of North Dakota, Sen. Hoeven launched the first Day of the Deployed on Oct. 26, 2006.