One of the greatest things you can be in this world is be soldier in the the United States Marine Corp, U.S. Army, an Airman in the U.S. Air Force or sailor in the The U.S. Coast Guard or U.S. Navy. These are truly the 1%. Today on 11-11-11, we honor and give THANKS to everyone who has served or is currently serving in any of these branches.
Each of us knows some one who has served in some capacity in each of these branches. The ones that I personally know are as follows:
Duane Hoffman (my dad) served in the Army during the Korean War
Harold Teichmann (uncle) served as Gen. Douglas McCarthur's adjunct during World War II
Ed Teichmann (uncle) was a Major in the United States Marine Corps during World War II
Ray Happ (uncle) served during World War II
Ray Hoffman (uncle) served during World War II
Booa Harkesen (wife's uncle) served during World War II
Ed Schwarz (wife's uncle) served during World War II
Mike Ketelsen (wife's uncle) served in the Vietnam Era
Roy Abbott (wife's brother) served in the USMC
Ron Abbott (wife's brother) served in the Coast Guard
Mike Clark (wife's cousin) served in the USMC
Kenny Clark (wife's cousin) served in USMC
Today I honor and thank each of these vets and all of those people who have served or are currently serving and protecting the greatest nation on this earth, the United States of America. We also need to thank all of their families for the sacrifices they gave so our country's freedoms could be protected.
All gave some, Some gave all. If you can read this now thank a teacher, since it is in English, Thank a Vet.
There are thousands of soldiers in Afghanastan and Iraq who are currently serving or have recently served that we need to continually thank. Sometimes these wars are so far away and out of sight, out of mind that we forget that these people are serving us every day. I only wish we had more than 1 day per year to honor them. I feel each of us should do our part by doing a few things that are very simple. They are: Take some time to approach any one you see in a military uniform any day of the week and thank them for their service. Thank those on your personal list like the list I made above. Let them know you appreciate their service so that blogs like this are still freely written, that we can freely worship God, that we can occupy any city for no particular reason. Contribute to veteran's associations of your time, treasure and talents so the vets that return now know that we appreciate their efforts more than how we showed those who served in the days and years after they returned from Vietnam. Share what you can with projects like wounded warriors or funds that provide for the families of those who are currently serving.
Again, I thank and honor all who have served. As you see above, I had a lot of family members who belong in that group. My only regret is that I cannot be included on that list for any one. Sometimes I truly wish I could have served in some capacity, but due to physical limitations, that was impossible. My only hope is that my own children have the desire to protect and serve our nation. I know that no family wants to give the ultimate sacrifice, but I do hope we continue to have those who are willing to serve to preserve the greatness our forefathers wanted for our nation. God Bless our troops and God Bless America!!
