(CBS) On Wednesday, March 9, 2005, Dan Rather completed his final broadcast after 24 years as anchor of CBS Evening News.

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We have shared a lot in the 24 years we've been meeting here each evening. And before I say good night, this night, I need to say thank you.

Thank you to the hundreds of wonderful professionals at CBS News, past and present, with whom it has been my honor to work, over these years.

And a deeply-felt thanks to all of you who have let us into your homes, night after night. It has been a privilege, and one never taken lightly.

Not long after I first came to the anchor chair I briefly signed off using the word "courage." I want to return to it now, in a different way.

To a nation still nursing a broken heart for what happened here in 2001 and especially those who found themselves closest to the events of Sept. 11; to our soldiers in dangerous places; to those who have endured the tsunami and to all who have suffered natural disasters and who must find the will to rebuild; to the oppressed and to those whose lot it is to struggle, in financial hardship or in failing health; to my fellow journalists in places where reporting the truth means risking all; and to each of you.

Courage.

For the CBS Evening News, Dan Rather reporting.

Goodnight.

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