How did you spend Veteran's Day? Published Nov. 24, 2008 By Senior Master Sgt. Alice Munoz 349th Air Mobility Wing TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- For many of us, Veterans Day came and went like a normal day. Some of us visited with family and friends, some caught a movie and others worked on hobbies. But, members of the honor guard participated in parades and assemblies to honor the nation's veterans. This year, due to my on-going deployment at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, I was fortunate enough to spend Veterans Day touring the Luxembourg-American Cemetery and Memorial. The cemetery is one of 14 American cemeteries (and the only one in Luxembourg) erected overseas after World War I. Each cemetery contains a memorial with a record in permanent graphic form of the achievements of the U.S. armed forces in that region. The graves in the World War I and World War II American cemeteries number approximately 39 percent of those originally buried. The remains of the other 61 percent were returned home at the request of next of kin. More than 5,076 World War II (1944-1945) veterans from the United States who lost their lives in the service of their country now rest in peace at the beautiful American cemetery in Luxembourg. These honored dead came from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. In 22 instances, two brothers rest side-by-side in adjacent graves. Among those interred in the cemetery are 101 unknown Soldiers whose remains could not be identified. Their headstones are inscribed, "Here rests in honored glory a comrade in arms known but to God." White marble shafts surmounted by a Star of David mark the graves of 118 of the Jewish faith. White marble Latin crosses mark the others. The 5,076 headstones are set in nine plots of fine grass, lettered from A - I. Separating the plots are two small paths. Two flag poles overlook the graves at its northern end in front of the memorial. Gen. George S. Patton Jr. is buried here just below the terrace wall halfway between the flagpoles. I hope each of you celebrated this Veterans Day, remembering all of our forefathers, brothers and sisters - past and present - who sacrificed, or are presently sacrificing, their lives for the freedom we all believe in, share, enjoy and live for in the United States.