Veteran's Day

J

Jagdflieger

Jr. Admin
Today, the 11th of November is Veteran's Day.

It was the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month that the guns fell silent in 1918. Today we include all wars since into the equation and for the countries celebrating, the Commonwealth, France and the USA, that's been more than a few.

Its a solemn day for those who've born the burden of service and a reminder that our freedom comes at a high cost. A salute to those who didn't make it back and to those who are broken from their efforts.
 
Salute

Amen, Jagd. From a fellow vet, a salute to all who have served, and to all who continue to serve. Let their sacrifice not be in vain. :USA-flag:
 
I have but the deepest respect for all our war veterans of all our previous wars. I also have a prayer for those who have lost their earthly lives defending our cherish freedom.:ernae:
 
vetsday08-lo-1-1.jpg
 
Thanks to all veterans, past and present who have served and continue to. Our freedom is tied to your sacrifice. :USA-flag:
 
From a fellow soldier... to those who have gone before me... to those who remain cradled in an earthen grave on a foreign shore... to you this day our hearts go out.

Even if nobody else on this campus today remembers what you all have done... one does... thank you.

PRESENT..... ARMS!:USA-flag:
 
There are two days a year that bring tears to my eyes and a lump in my throat ... Memorial Day and Armistice Day (that's what we old war horses used to call it).

To all my fellow comrades, peacetime or wartime, in every branch of the service ... God bless you for your service. And for you on active duty and directly in harms' way ... may He keep you safe.

Bill Kestell
Romeo 33 Delta
 
Some years back, I was a Non-Veteran, Support member of a Vietnam Veterans of America local branch. I was basically their official photographer, videographer and poet lauriet. I wrote this poem for the back page of their 1996 Veteran's Day Ceremony program.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


Lest We Forget

Think of the American men, soldiers all,
Who courageously answered this country's call.
Who are missing, presumed to be dead,
Think of them when the role is read.

Lest We Forget

Think of the American men, soldiers all,
Who valiantly answered this country's call.
Who were captured and made prisoners of war,
Think of them now and forever more.

Lest We Forget

Think of the American men, soldiers all,
Who heroically answered this country's call,
Who, when the war was over, were left behind,
Let us keep them always in our mind.

Lest We Forget

Think of the American men, soldiers all,
Who willingly answered this country's call.
Think of them, the POW, the MIA
And pray that they will come home one day.

Lest We Forget


+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

To all you who have served, in the many wars that rage across the face of this big blue planet....thank you.

To all you who left home and hearth to defend freedom and liberty for those who stayed behind....thank you.

To all you who made the ultimate sacrifice, giving your youth, your blood, your life so that we can be free.....thank you.

To all you who now stand ready to answer the call....thank you.

To all you who now leave hearth and home and defend freedom and liberty for those who stay behind....thank you.

To all you who now are prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice of your youth, your blood and your life so that we can be free....thank you.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

This morning, my nephew, Donnie, began the trip back to Baghdad, Iraq. We had him home with us for 2 weeks, and will not see him again for another year. At the family's early Thanksgiving feast, Donnie had his laptop with him, and had it loaded with pictures and videos he had taken while on patrol, while in his off duty time (playing with a ghecko of some sort and giving it a drink of ice cold Coka Cola...that was priceless).
 
Happy Veterans Day Brothers in Arms, Happy Veterans Day.

:ernae:

And, a Happy Belated Birthday Devildogs wherever you are!

OORAH!
 
Schools Need Help

We had a very nice assembly at Stafford High School today. Every year we invite all of the veterans in town to come and PARTICIPATE in an assembly to thank our vets. This is very important. Do not make the mistake of thinking our children will remember the sacrifices that have been made by soldiers, or the evil deeds that have pushed my country into wars (like the holocaust). Someone needs to teach them these things.

I am sorry to place this burden on all of you vets, but your job is not over. We teachers need your help to teach kids about the lessons learned so that mistakes are not repeated. Volunteer to go to your local school and tell a few stories, maybe wear that old uniform. These simple things can grab the attention of kids and they will listen. The lectures of a nerdy social studies teacher will not not have as big an impact as your presence. :USA-flag:
 
To Day Is

a very special day for me-To the guys I left in Nam May God hold you in his arms- To the guys that made it back with me and all the other wars I say JOB Well Done.
RM :unitedsta:
 
My father-in-law is one of the few men I really respect. Among other things, he served in the Battle of the Bulge. He is nearly blind without his glasses so the army, in all its wisdom, put him in the I&R platoon. Needless to say he broke his glasses. Once he found a German tank by literally walking into it. It had been abandoned. That's the only "war story" he ever tells. Myself, when people ask me if I ever served in the military I reply "no, I was in the navy."
 
Hern07 - I suppose all my shipmates that died because of Kamakaze attacks or the 800 who died when the Indianapolis was sunk nor the sailors that perished on the many landings ever thought they were in the military.
They were in the Navy.
 
I watched yesterdays service at the Cenotaph in London. A particularly poignant one as the last three surviving British WWI veterans, one Army, one Navy and one RAF were there to lay wreaths.

Over 300 years worth of life experiences, some in the most harrowing conflicts of the last century. We must ensure that they are never forgotten.
 
I spent my Vereran's Day by going to morning mass.

In and of itself that might not be a big deal but there is something special about it for me. Coincidently, my local parish priest was my chaplan when I was in Vietnam.

When he first came here a few years back there was something about him that seemed familiar but I couldn't put my finger on it. I knew that he had made a career of the Army and one day four years ago we were swapping war stories when we suddenly realized that we were in the same obscure corner of Vietnam at the same time in 1968. It was a pretty powerful moment for both of us.

Considering that we came from very different backgrounds and travelled vastly different roads it seems a minor miracle that we would end up in the same place again some 8000 miles and 36 years later. So for me Veteran's Day mass carries a special meaning that links me directly to my past.
 
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