Editor\u2019s note: In salute of local servicemen and women, the following is a reprint of the address made by District 2 City Councilman Kevin Faulconer during the Mount Soledad Memorial Veterans Day Ceremony on Nov. 6:,<\/i> On this Veterans Day \u2014 the 72nd such celebration since it was first established as a legal holiday to honor the end of World War I \u2014 we pause to recognize war veterans\u2019 courage and sacrifice. Our veterans are true heroes who have all contributed to the success of this great country and to the defense of our nation. Our city is not defined by its buildings or landmarks, but by its people. And we are lucky to have over 260,000 war veterans in San Diego County \u2014 the largest veteran population in the country. San Diego\u2019s history, social and economic makeup are inextricably tied to the military\u2019s presence in the region. Since the Navy Coaling Station was established in 1901 in Point Loma, the military has played an increasing role in San Diego\u2019s foundation. Today, with Navy bases, Marine bases and Camp Pendleton, the military is a part of our very fabric. It is evident to me, and I\u2019m sure to each of you, that San Diego would not be the grand city that it is without our rich military history and culture. The Mount Soledad Veterans Memorial is a magnificent tribute to this great country\u2019s men and women who served in the armed forces \u2014 real heroes who sacrificed to protect our freedoms. This memorial signifies their courage, strength and valor. I will always fight to maintain this important Veterans War Memorial as it is, where it is. Words cannot truly express our debt to war veterans. They have sacrificed, many with their lives, to protect the freedoms many of us take for granted. They truly are remarkable souls. So, on behalf of the city of San Diego, I stand with you today to say to our veterans, “Thank you.” As Elmer Davis famously said, “This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave.” We can rest assured that we will always be free. \u2014 Kevin Faulconer is San Diego City Council president pro tem. He represents District 2, which includes Point Loma, Ocean Beach, downtown, Mission Beach and Pacific Beach.<\/i><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Editor\u2019s note: In salute of local servicemen and women, the following is a reprint of the address made by District 2 City Councilman Kevin Faulconer during the Mount Soledad Memorial Veterans Day Ceremony on Nov. 6:, On this Veterans Day \u2014 the 72nd such celebration since it was first established as a legal holiday to […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11561","_seopress_titles_title":"GUEST COLUMN","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11593,11552,11561],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-294418","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-no-images","category-opinion","category-peninsula-beacon"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294418","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=294418"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294418\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=294418"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=294418"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=294418"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}