 Inspired by a 9-11 and a family tradition of military service, he served 10 years in the U.S. Navy as an intelligence specialist and as an intelligence officer rising through the ranks, the enlisted ranks to the officer rank lieutenant. At the age of 25, he became a civilian professor at the Union War College. He quickly earned the respect of his colleagues, establishing himself not only as a student educator and collaborator, but as a leading voice on climactic change to the Arctic region and improving our nation's military. He went on to earn a doctorate because he wanted to understand how laws and policies should work to help those in need. It was with these ideas in mind that he arrived in our nation's capital last year as a senior policy advisor to the State Department. On the home front, he is a community volunteer leader and staff partner with the American Red Cross of Rhode Island. His most valued counsel just happens to be his best friend and his wife, Lori, who is with us today and their two children, Aubrey and James. It is a personal pleasure to honor and to welcome our Veterans Day speaker, Walter R. Berverick. Thank you very much everyone and good morning fellow Veterans, service members, boom star and gold star families. Here's a community distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. It's a great honor for me to be here with all of you and we celebrate the service and sacrifice of our Veterans. Here at this ceremony, organized by the American Legion and by the Veterans of Foreign Wars, founded by patriotic veterans of the Spanish American War and World War I, they are the largest and oldest organizations of their time whose halls and posts across our ocean state and across our nation remain an angel of hope for our youth, our communities and our veterans and service members. So no matter where or when you served, the veterans of this state and of the nation deserve the nation's thanks. And I thank all of you for braving the cold to honor them here today. I'm proud to have served at the Navy for over a decade both in listed and as an officer. And now as a veteran, the thing I've grown to appreciate more and more is the unbreakable bond and the shared experience that exists among all who've worn the cloth of our nation, spanning different generations and different conflicts. This is stories we share in the memories we keep alive through conversations in our halls, our posts, our schools and on social media on and around the dinner table, like memories I have with my grandfather, preparing thousands of meals as a cook and then it's his Navy. Lessons of submarine hunting and house hunting that told all my father-in-law after 23 years of naval service and the vivid experiences of war that remained with my brother and Marine infantrymen and veteran who served three combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Each and every time a new generation has risen up and answered the call to service. As citizens of this great nation, we have a solemn obligation to pay it forward, to fight against tyranny and injustice wherever it raises its ugly head, to take care of our veterans and our families so that they have all the care that they need and deserve. And that we forever honor your service and sacrifice both on the battlefield and right here at home. These are the extraordinary responsibilities I take apart and that I carry with me each and every day in the work that I do for you as veterans for our state and for our nation. Because as a fellow veteran, your pain is my pain, your memories are my memories and your future is my future. This nation came to age during the Great War. We were the voice that captured the world's imagination 100 years ago. A single, powerful belief that all people in all nations come together and live in peace. It was a message heard by friends and foes alike, by millions of soldiers and trenches and citizens of Europe unable to see the light of dawn. It was the simple belief that the United States could lead the world to a better future. This is why a generation of American veterans fought World War I. Their mission wasn't the victory of might, but the vindication of right. Not peace at the expense of freedom, but both peace and freedom. And whether you agree or not, this has been the foundation of Americans' foreign policy over the last 100 years. And why our veterans swear before Almighty God a common oath. Because history shows us that established democracies never go to war with each other, making the need for democracy greater than ever. And the most effective way to encourage it is in plain sight, we the people. Which means all the people. And despite the United States being a democracy founded on the Declaration that all men are created equal. African Americans lived and worked in a segregated society, fought in segregated unions. Ironically overseas, on the battlefront, white and black American service members spilt the same red blood in France. Veterans like Private Arthur Brown and Providence, the only African American from Rhode Island, was killed in action. Many women took on clerical positions or factory jobs, begging by male soldiers. Women volunteered for the very first time on active duty, with over 20,000 serving as nurses in an army and in the Navy, both on the home front and on the front lines. Despite their service, they still couldn't go. Women like Dr. Harriet Rice of Newport, the top graduate of Rogers High School, was awarded for her outstanding service in French military hospitals, treating wounded French soldiers. And it's remarkable to think 100 years ago, nearly half of all of our American service members fighting in World War I were either immigrants or children. Immigrants learned how to be American, and native-born Americans learned how to get along with immigrants. In fact, 13 immigrants born in 12 different nations from around the world, or in the middle of honor. Our nation's top military decoration, but they're heroic actions. They charged enemy guns, rescued comrades, took command when others fell, and in one case died in the process. And despite Rhode Island being the smallest state in the Union, we played one of the biggest parts in helping America turn the tide and end the war and all wars. From wound socket to westerly and everywhere in between. From the first wave to the last shot, Rhode Islanders were right there on the front lines. 54,000 people marched through downtown Providence in preparation for war, and by the start of it nearly that many men alone were registered. The next door training ground in Providence became a staging area as soldiers from our area deployed for Europe. Tens of thousands of Red Cross volunteers provided numerous services for our troops overseas, and Red Cross nurses served alongside their Army counterparts. The pages of Providence Journal encouraged readers to knit sweaters and scarves for the Red Cross to reach soldiers before the cold. It's remarkable to think just 100 years later, in fact this upcoming weekend, we're still standing shoulder to shoulder, filling hundreds of care packages for our Rhode Island service members away from home this holiday season. More than 4 million families sent their sons and daughters to serve in uniform during World War I. For the first time ever, we saw submarines, tanks, machine guns, chemical weapons, aerial bombing, all entering battle for the very first time. And before the guns fell silent, 100 years ago, nearly 116,000 Americans lost their lives, including more than 700 Rhode Islanders who gave their last full measure of devotion to advancing the ideas of democracy. We lost more America's service members in the 17 months fighting in World War I than we did in the 17 long years in Vietnam and Korea combined. Veterans like Bernardo Cardines, an Italian immigrant who lived in Newport and died in France. These joined by 55 other patrons of Newport. Familiar names like Bagel, Dwyer, Crowley, Murphy, Fitzgerald. Veterans who gave their last breath so we could have ours. After our ceremony, I'll bring my children with me down to visit their beautiful memorial at Miami Dunwoody Tower, the highest point in Newport with sweeping views of Newport Harbor. If you stood on that tower about 100 years ago, you would see 14 companies at coastal artillery units, bravely patrolling our shores and guarding our bridges. New submarines tested. And the Arganza Bay and over 75,000 Americans trained their way through Coasters Harbor. And it was here in Newport where a German submarine armed with torpedoes sailed boldly, gave no notice of its arrival, put America on notice, and rendered little notice to the five burships that it was sinking off Nantucket the next day. Naval Station Newport, the Naval Hospital, for in many cases many homes in this city by the sea, cared for survivors, many women and many children. Admiral William Sims, president of the War College, led American Naval Forces in Europe. He taught us how to hunt submarines, run convoys of troops and supplies with allies, and achieve victory at sea. But it was his moral courage that made him timeless. Without regard to personal consequences, he wasn't afraid to call out our weaknesses and our failures of the nation and of the Navy. Our shortfalls in strategy, tactics, and policy, in doing so with honesty and intellect. This set the foundation for his work when he returned back as president of the college after the war, and work that continues today. And on that eventful November 11th morning, 100 years ago, Rhode Island units in the 26th Division participated in the final shot at German lines. That was the world 100 years ago. And there's no longer any veterans from the Great War that are still alive, but there are people alive who live during that time. And it's remarkable to think how far we've come as a nation. But we still have a lot of work to do. The cost of freedom is always high, and American veterans have always paid it, but not at the expense of our core values. The humble heroes that walk among us today give us hope. They show us how to live by these values even after retiring the uniform. As citizens, we hold ourselves in each other accountable, telling the truth, having the courage to do what's right, even when it's hard or when it's not popular. And this will come as our hearts still ache. Over the last months, brutal murders. That's a Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. No freedom of religion is one of our most treasured liberties enshrined in our Constitution. And let us never forget that it was the greatest generation of Americans. Veterans like Eddie Lopez and Mandy Diaz of Newport who are here today. That liberated concentration camps in Europe, showing what can happen when hatred and anti-Semitism go unanswered. As veterans and as service members, it's our job to place the mission first. To never accept defeat, to never quit. And to never leave a fallen comrade behind, whether that's on the battlefield or right here at home. It's the common belief that we're all part of something larger and that we're all in this fight together. As a country, we must close ranks and do the same. Today we're called on once more to stand the watch. For this generation of Americans, my generation, to answer the call of service. I believe that's the best way we can honor your service and sacrifice as veterans. For the last ten years, I've had the honor and privilege of educating our nation's military leaders in uniform, as well as some of our allies and partners. You meet some of these women, you talk to them, you listen to their ideas and their beliefs. They should give you hope for our future. They are taking the baton armed with knowledge. They know that they just can't rest on the accomplishments they have. Even the accomplishments as momentous as ending World War I. They know that wars, like great wars, like the great war are unpredictable and that it would be a mistake to assume that it couldn't happen again. And they know that if you want peace, you must prepare for war. They also know that preventing wars is just as important as winning them. But ultimately it may depend on the leaders we choose and whether or not they choose to follow the lessons of history. Service is the real measure of a great nation and a sacred responsibility we all share. Let's remember that truth. A truth that lies in our common hopes for humanity. Let's remember who bears the burden of war. Let's be determined in our struggle to make that truth manifest right here on Earth so that 100 years from now, future generations will look back and say they ended the war to end all wars. May God bless all of you, sir, and still do. Thank you very much.