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" Any man who may be asked in this century what he did to make his life worthwhile can respond with a good deal of pride and satisfaction. ' I served in the United States Navy.'"

President John F Kennedy

On this day I salute you, salute with you and weep with all..And say thanks to all those who served....
Ollie Smith FTM2 USN 60-69 VFW Post 2121

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Bless you all....i have had grandfathers father, uncles, cousins who have served in every war from WW2.and my grandmother who was a Rosie the Riveter during WW2.....i am grateful to past, present and future soldiers...

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I salute each and every one of you who have served in the military keeping this country free.


THANK YOU..................................

Served 4 years US Army - '87-91 as 24K1H - Hawk Continuous Wave Radar Repairer, with last 2 years of my term teaching electronics. Many of my students and friends went to the Gulf the first time we were there. Still have many friends in the Guard.

My dad was in the Dominican Republic during the mid-60's w/ 82nd Airborne, one of my uncles was fortunate enough to make it through multiple tours in Vietnam.

God bless those who continue to fight for our freedoms - both here and abroad.

I don't have to like the reasons, but I will ALWAYS support those who make the sacrifice to serve.

Rememberance Day here in Canada.

Here is a poem written in 1915 by a Canadian doctor Col John MacRae with some of his background. This poem is now on the back of the Canadian ten dollar bill and read at all Rememberance Day ceremonies. We now only have a handful of veterans still alove from WWI


In Flanders Field
The Legacy of
Colonel John McCrae


Summer, 1915. World War I. English and French armies had dug in their heels against the bulldozer onslaught of the German army as it ploughed its way across the plains of Flanders. After a day of ferocious fighting following the second battle of Ypres, the sun rose on a relatively quiet battlefield.

Col. John McCrae cautiously poked his head above the security of his trench to be met with the horrifying sight of row upon row of makeshift crosses littering the plains before him: ghostly reminders of the grim aftermath of the earlier battle marking the graves of the fallen.

McCrae, a Canadian veteran of the Second Boer War and professor of medicine at McGill University in Montreal, was struck with admiration at the courage of the dead and overwhelmed by awe at their selflessness as he caught sight of the tiny, red poppies dancing lazily in the gentle breeze among the grave markers of his fallen comrades. Inspired by the sight, and by the memories of the previous days of vicious fighting, McCrae grabbed a pad of paper and pen and quickly began to write down the words that had suddenly appeared in his mind. In minutes, his creation was complete:

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

McCrae's fellow commanders read the poem and encouraged him to publish it. He submitted his simple poem to Britain's famous Punch magazine, which readily published it in a rarely-used bold type. The effects of the poem washed across Britain like a giant wave. All of Britain was moved and encouraged by the words, and the poem quickly spread throughout the allied nations.

The poppy became a symbol of 'Life' and 'Resurrection': the red petals were the colour of the blood that stained the battlefield; the yellow/black centre represented the mud and desolation; the green of the stem became representative of the forests and fields where generations of men have died to make their land free; the stem itself symbolized the courage of the fallen soldiers. Life and freedom, all in this tiny, overlooked flower.

In 1918, a seriously-wounded Col. John McCrae was carried by stretcher to a rear base hospital on the coast of France and placed in a room where he might look out the window toward the Dover cliffs across the channel. He died three nights later.

McCrae's final words, according to his doctor, were: "Tell them this, if ye break faith with us who die, we shall not sleep."

Colonel John McCrae was buried in the cemetery of Wimereux

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Grenada and Honduras were nothing compared to what many vets have been called forth to do. I salute them with every ounce of who and what I as as a human being that answered my country's call to duty.

I salute all vets, whether peacetime or wartime, but especially those that had to rise to the task at hand! of defending their country.

To those of you that have posted, my SINCERE thanks for thinking of us !

Air Force 1972-1994. And after 9 years in the civilian sector, I am proud to say that I am serving again (as a federal employee) helping to train a new generation of patriots. I too salute my brothers in arms; past, (and Lord keep them safe) present, and future.

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JR & Michele LaPorte
Peoria, AZ

US Army, 1986-1993 Just missed being sent to the sandbox the first time around because of how quickly the troops on the ground got it done.

I was in Germany when the wall came down in 89--I'll never forget it!

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I provided the sound for the local Vetern's Day ceremony yesterday, (I'm batting a 1,000, been there every year for 14 years). It was really nice. The speaker was a Lt. Col. who was one of the first troops sent to Iraq. I'm glad I got to hear him. He was really cool about leaving politics out of what he had to say but did tell us how proud he was to have served and what is being accomplished over there. He said "I know you don't hear it here on the news but you cannot imagine how much the very opressed Iraqi citizen appreciates our efforts,,, they needed help".

It was good, made me proud,,,, and the 4 Carvin's on the top of my van about vibrated off when I pumped up "Stars & Stripes Forever" at the conclusion of the program.


JB