Senior Crew
Posts: 160
Location: Hillsboro, OR | Subject: Veteran's Day letter to the editor
DAVE PARMLEY, FIRE CHIEF
LAKE DILLON FIRE RESCUE
SUMMIT COUNTY, CO COLORADO
This morning, many of us awoke to read our newspaper. Over the weekend, many of us attended church or other houses of worship. And last Tuesday, we cast our votes to determine who would represent us to make decisions about our communities, our state and our nation.
These things represent our rights as U.S. citizens —the freedom of the press, the freedom of religion and the right to vote. These are freedoms that are granted to us by the Constitution of the United States. And they are freedoms that are protected every day by the men and women who courageously serve in our armed forces.
But, as we all know, freedom does not come free. There is a price that we pay for our freedom. Today is Veteran’s Day — the one day we set aside each year to pay tribute to the millions of brave Americans who have answered the call of duty. Many have died defending our freedom. They have paid the ultimate price. Many have suffered debilitating physical and mental injuries in defense of freedom.
Not all veterans have seen war, but a common bond that they share is an oath in which they expressed their willingness to die defending this nation. And each of those men and women left their homes and their loved ones. Many of them put their careers and their educations on hold. Many endured tremendous hardships, were placed in the most inhospitable places, and placed their lives in harms way — all in the name of freedom.
All of us, regardless of political persuasion or attitude toward ongoing wars, should express appreciation to our veterans, whether they’re from World War II, Korea, Vietnam, or freshly back from Iraq or Afghanistan. As we can probably all agreem as long as there are men and women who are willing to stand up and serve, we must always be willing to stand up and honor their service.
We should also thank the families of veterans, as they are not recognized nearly enough for the hardships they endure. Many of us have family members, sons and daughters who are currently serving. Speaking as a father of a soldier who was wounded in the current war in Iraq, I can personally attest to how incredibly difficult it is to have your child or parent or spouse away from home and serving in harms’ way.
Although Veterans’ Day is a special time to honor their courage, it only happens once a year. I hope each of us will hold our nation’s veterans in our thoughts and our spirits every day, 365 days a year.
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Veteran's Day letter to the editor
