There were 16,112,566 members of the United States Armed Forces during
World War II. There were 291,557 battle deaths, 113,842 other deaths in service
(non-theater), and 670,846 non-mortal woundings. According to the
Department of Veterans Affairs, 697,806 American veterans from
the war are still alive as of 2016.
Source: Wikipedia
..."That, of course, is the lesson of this century, a lesson learned in the Sudetenland, in Poland, in Hungary, in Czechoslovakia, in Cambodia. If we really care about peace, we must stay strong. If we really care about peace, we must, through our strength, demonstrate our unwillingness to accept an ending of the peace. We must be strong enough to create peace where it does not exist and strong enough to protect it where it does. That's the lesson of this century and, I think, of this day. And that's all I wanted to say. The rest of my contribution is to leave this great place to its peace, a peace it has earned.
Thank all of you, and God bless you, and have a day full of memories.
Ronald Reagan
Remarks at a Memorial Day Ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia
May 26, 1986
Happy Memorial Day Weekend!