Veterans Day Is Different Now (NAPSA)—Perhaps this year more Americans will watch Veterans Day parades as a wayof paying tribute to those who served and those who sacrificed—both in the past and recently—and to show support for men and women in uniform today. Veterans Day, POT Sa riers November 11, is a time to remem- ber and honor those who have served and sacrificed to keep Americafree. Perhaps more people will call loved ones, look at photos, visit graves or send cards to those who lost someone dear, those who served, those in active service—and those who never were appropriately thanked for risking their lives in wars—evenless popular wars. To help people expresstheir feelings and let others know they haven’t forgotten, Hallmark is offering a collection of cards for Veterans Day, inspired by courage and sacrifice, to reflect the new sense of gratitude that is expected this year for those who have keptusfree. Creating those cards had special significance for some people at Hallmark. The team who developed the cards haveclose personal connections with veterans. Moved by the experience of September 11, Keri Lauderdale Olson, a product manager, gave her dad (a Vietnam War veteran) a card on Veterans Daylast year. “When he read the card, he cried and told me no one had ever thanked him before,” recalls Olson. “That was the moment I decided to do all I could to make sure Hallmark offered Veterans Daycardsthis year.” Writers who worked on the cards also have their ownstories. One writer’s father was a paratrooper and her mother was a Navy WAVE in World War II. Another’s husband served in the Korean War and her father, a pilot, retired from the U.S. Air Force as a colonel. One grew up near the military base where her dad worked—then she saw him drafted for the Korean War. The writing team’s leader volunteers with the Veterans Administration Hospital Writing Project and edits Veterans Voices, a publication that features veterans’ writing. New Veterans Day cards honor WWII and other war vets. “Hallmark’s role is to give people the words in a card they can touch and pass on as a keepsake of an occasion, or just let someone know they care,” says Paul Barker, Hallmark creative vice president. “Hallmark is humbled by the challenge of helping people express their feelings about freedom, our country, those they love and those theylost.” Although Hallmark had consumer-tested cards for veterans in the past with little interest, it was clear to Olson that 2002 would be different. Retailers agree. Wholesale orders are triple what Hallmark had expected. About 18,000 stores offer Veter- ans Daycards. The 20 cards in the Veterans Day collection reflect specific wars, relationships and military branches. Oneis specifically for women and oneis for active service. Four cards in the collection are for anyone who protects and serves—firefighters and police officers, for example. November 11 originally was declared Armistice Day in 1919, to honor Americans who had served in World War I. Veterans Day becamea national holiday in 1954 when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a bill proclaiming November11 Veterans Day.
