Wreaths Across America … Remembering America’s Fallen Heroes

Staunton National Cemetery (photo by Lynn R. Mitchell)

If you drive by a military cemetery today and see headstones decorated with fresh, handmade balsam Christmas wreaths accented with bright red bows, you will have witnessed the work of Wreaths Across America.

Across the nation and around the world, thousands of volunteers are continuing the twenty-six-year tradition that began in 1992 with 4,000 excess wreaths donated by Morrill Worcester, a tradition that continues each December. Hundreds of thousands of wreaths are reverently placed on military graves as a remembrance of those who sacrificed for our freedom.

Mr. Worcester’s quiet donation all those years ago of 4,000 wreaths for Arlington Cemetery has become an annual gift of love from this Maine wreath maker who recognized that freedom is not free. Because of his generosity and desire to remember those who sacrificed, he started a tradition that was fairly obscure for 12 years until a photo hit the internet in 2005 showing the Christmas wreaths on Arlington’s snow-covered graves.

This is the 2005 photo that went viral and showed America how a local wreath company was quietly honoring our heroes.

As the photo circulated and spread the Worcester story, an anonymous person added a caption: “Rest easy, sleep well, my brothers. Know the line has held, your job is done. Rest easy, sleep well. Others have taken up where you fell, the line has held. Peace, peace, and farewell.”

Word spread quickly and wreath requests poured in for other military cemeteries around the country which led Mr. Worcester and his family to establish the non-profit Wreaths Across America with a mission to remember, honor, and teach.

What would drive this 65-year-old owner of the largest wreath producing company in the world to give away thousands of wreaths for the past 26 years?

Mr. Worcester recalled that when he was a 12-year-old newspaper carrier, he won a Bangor Daily News subscription-selling contest that sent him to the Nation’s Capital. The lines of white stones in Arlington Cemetery made an impression on him that never left.

Years later, Christmas 1992, the successful businessman’s Worcester Wreath Company had 4,000 surplus wreaths late in the season and nothing to do with them. Grateful that his success was due in large part to the sacrifice of American troops, and remembering the rows of white tombstones, he put in a call to his congressman and secured permission from Arlington Cemetery.

With a handful of volunteers, they drove a truck load of wreaths to Arlington and spent the next six hours distributing them on graves, a tradition continued quietly for years by a man who did not seek publicity. The 2005 photo changed all that and sealed his destiny.

Today thousands of volunteers will lay wreaths at American military cemeteries around the world. National Cemetery in Staunton has been a recipient for a number of years.

On each wreath will be a tag that reads: “Through the generosity and actions of hundreds of thousands of volunteers, this wreath is donated and placed on the grave of a True American Hero. Wreaths Across America … we make it our business to NEVER FORGET.”

It’s once again a reminder that freedom is not free … and a reminder that Americans have not forgotten their fallen heroes. That is the legacy of Morrill Worcester and his Maine balsam Christmas wreaths.

Cross-posted at BearingDrift.com

Virginia Green Beret Among Three Killed in Afghanistan

Army Sgt. 1st Class Eric Michael Emond, 39, of Brush Prairie, Wash., Army Capt. Andrew Patrick Ross, 29, of Lexington, Va., and Air Force Staff Sgt. Dylan J. Elchin, 25, of Hookstown, Pa. (Photo courtesy of Department of Defense)

A Virginia man was killed Tuesday in Afghanistan when he and two others suffered fatal injuries after their vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device (IED).

Army Captain Andrew “Drew” Patrick Ross, 29, of Lexington, had served more than seven years in the Army and was on his second overseas tour, according to the U.S. Army Special Operations Command. Captain Ross, who is survived by his wife and parents, was a member of the 1st Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) out of Fort Bragg, N.C.

Army Sgt. 1st Class Eric Michael Emond, 29, of Brush Prairie, Washington, and Air Force Staff Sgt. Dylan J. Elchin, 25, of Hookstown, Pa, were also killed.

Lexington is a small, close-knit community in western Virginia. The historic city is home to Virginia Military Institute where Captain Ross’ father graduated.

The Taliban, a Sunni Islamic fundamentalist political movement in Afghanistan that has been behind numerous attacks over the years, took credit for the attack, claiming foreign invaders were being targeted.

The Lexington News-Gazette wrote:

Drew Ross was a 2007 graduate of Rockbridge County High School and a 2011 graduate of West Point. In May 2011, he was invited to lead the Pledge of Allegiance at the RCHS commencement ceremony.

“It’s very sad news, he was a great kid,” said David “Weenie” Miller, RCHS teacher and coach, on Wednesday. Ross was recently married, he said, and Miller’s son, Michael, a member of the U.S. Navy now serving in Naval Intelligence, was best man at Drew’s wedding.

Drew was the son of Stephen and Beth Ross, both now living in Richmond. Stephen Ross, a 1983 graduate of Virginia Military Institute, coached soccer at VMI. Beth Ross was a nurse in the office of Dr. Troise.

Drew Ross played soccer at RCHS coached by the late Tony Conway and went on to play soccer at West Point.

His sister, Sarah, graduated from RCHS in 2003.

Drew Ross is the second RCHS and West Point graduate to have died in Afghanistan, both victims of roadside bombs. Chase Prasnicki, a local football star who graduated from RCHS in 2006 and who played on the football team at West Point, was killed in Afghanistan by an improvised explosive device while on patrol in June 2012.

Stars and Stripes wrote:

While fewer Americans are dying in the war these days, members of the relatively small and tight-knit special operations community — and especially Army Rangers and Green Berets — disproportionately number among the American deaths in recent years.

More than half of the 13 Americans who died in Afghanistan this year — 12 in combat — have been special operations troops. In 2017, Rangers and Green Berets accounted for five of 11 U.S. combat fatalities and special operations soldiers constituted half of the four noncombat deaths.

The Special Operations Warrior Foundation, which supports the families of special-ops troops and other troops within Special Operations Command, estimates elite troops and their support personnel make up about 5 percent of the military but half of the casualties.

Captain Ross was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart, Meritorious Service Medal, and the Combat Infantry Badge. He had previously earned a Bronze Star Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, NATO Medal, Overseas Service Ribbon, National Defense Service Medal, Special Forces Tab, Ranger Tab, Combat Action Badge, and Military Free Fall Parachutist Badge.

Before the attack on Tuesday, Army Ranger Sgt. Leandro Jasso, a member of the 75th Ranger Regiment, was killed the week before while battling al-Qaida in Nimruz Province.

Freedom is not free.

The Price of War

Today is the 73rd anniversary of V-E Day — victory in Europe — marking the end of World War II in that part of the world. Six weeks earlier, on March 21, 1945, a Virginia soldier was killed by Germans while battling along the Siegfried Line. He was 27 years old, my mother’s oldest brother.

His name was Clarence Osborne, the oldest of nine siblings. My mom was the baby of the family, a student at Thomas Dale High School in Chester, when her brother was killed. She still remembers her mother’s reaction that fateful day when the official government car drove up the driveway of their Chesterfield County farm many decades ago, and how her mother’s knees buckled as she realized the presence of that car meant her son had been killed. Mom says her mother, who lived into her 80s, never completely got over the loss.

After retiring, Mom spent hours researching to fill the void of not knowing exactly what happened to her brother and eventually found Clarence’s sergeant, Dock Roberts, living in Texas. Another soldier buddy, Emelio Albert, lived in California. She traveled to both places to talk with them to learn about her brother’s journey as a U.S. Army soldier through war-torn Europe and his final hours, and she documented the treasured research for our family history. Here are her words about her oldest brother’s final months at war … by Eula Osborne Randall Lucy.

Italian Campaign
The Italian Campaign was one of the most difficult of World War II, and some of the most difficult battles for foot soldiers were in Italy which was very mountainous with heavy snows in the winter of 1943 and heavy cold rains in the late winter and spring of 1944. The earth turned into a quagmire and foxholes were filled with water. Mud was so deep it was nearly impassable for vehicles as well as men on foot. In the summer of 1944, the ground turned to dust which swirled at the least disturbance. The unit veterans’ most vivid memories of the Italian fighting was the weather and terrain.

Clarence spent 15 months as a First Gunner in a Mortar Squad, part of the American forces who freed the little town of San Pietro in southern Italy from the Germans. From there they battled their way to the Riviera in southern France and on to the northern border of France, plus one day on Germany. He was killed in the last great battle the 36th Division of the 1st Battalion, Company D, 143rd Infantry Regiment of the Texas National Guard.

Clarence’s first battle was December 15, 1943. Starting December 8th, the 36th Division had been trying to take 4,000-foot Mt. Summacro (Hill 1205) so they could liberate the little town of San Pietro at the base of the mountain. Dock Roberts, Clarence’s sergeant, and Roy Goad, Commanding Officer of the 143rd Regiment, were wounded on Hill 1205. San Pietro was at the entrance to the Liri Valley and was heavily fortified by the Germans. It had to be taken by the Allies before they could enter the Liri Valley in the drive to liberate Rome.

The men of the 36th Division had come into Italy after fighting in the deserts of North Africa and were still wearing their summer uniforms. They were not prepared for the bitterest winter Italy had experienced in years. Most had no overcoats, raincoats, or even gloves.

Much of the fighting for Hill 1205 was by climbing, literally hand over hand, straight up the side of the mountain which was very rugged with sharp, jagged rocks. Germans were entrenched on the top, protected by large boulders along the edge of the top of the mountain. When the first Allied soldiers reached the top and surprised them, the Germans started rolling large boulders off the mountain.

San Pietro
The 1st Battalion of the 143rd Infantry Regiment moved on from Hill 1205 to the battle to liberate San Pietro at the bottom. Clarence was a replacement for the 36th Division and entered the fighting on December 15th. The next day they finally succeeded in capturing San Pietro but a high price was paid with 1,100 casualties.

Two 82nd Airborne Paratroopers Killed In Iraq

Two American soldiers were killed Sunday in northern Iraq, according to the Department of Defense and the Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve:

Two U.S. service members were killed and five others were injured conducting combat operations in northern Iraq today, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today. 

The two soldiers were identified as  Sgt. Roshain E. Brooks, 30, of Brooklyn, New York, and Spc. Allen Levi Stigler Jr., 22, of Arlington, Texas.

Both were with the 2nd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, from Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

An artillery round meant to be fired at an Islamic State target in northern Iraq on Sunday exploded prematurely, defense officials said.

Stars and Stripes reported:

The soldiers and five others wounded in the blast were evacuated by helicopter from an undisclosed firebase in Iraq, where American troops are aiding Iraq forces in their continuing battle with ISIS after the militants were ousted from their Mosul stronghold last month, Army Col. Rob Manning, a Pentagon spokesman, said Monday. The two artillerymen died after they were evacuated. The other five injured soldiers were expected to survive their wounds, Manning told reporters at the Pentagon.
…
The artillery crew was targeting an ISIS mortar position when the mishap occurred, Manning said. The unit was firing an M777 howitzer, a towed 155 mm artillery piece, according to another defense official who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Despite ISIS’ claims Sunday that it killed the soldiers with rocket fire, Manning said “there is no indication at all that ISIS had anything to do with” the soldiers’ deaths. He said the incident was under investigation.

Sgt. Brooks joined the Army in July 2012 and deployed to Afghanistan from June to November 2014. This was his first deployment to Iraq. He had been awarded the Army Commendation Medal with “C” Device, the Army Achievement Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Iraq Campaign Medal with Campaign Star, the Parachutist Badge and the Air Assault Badge.

Spc. Stigler joined the Army in November 2013. He was assigned to the Second Infantry Division in Camp Casey, Korea from May 2014 to June 2015 following his completion of combat training and advanced individual training. In July 2015, he was assigned to the 82^nd Airborne Division.  This was his first combat deployment.

Several decorations had been awarded to Spc. Stigler while serving including the Iraq Campaign Medal with Campaign Star, the Parachutist Badge, and the National Defense Service Medal among others.

Spc. Stigler and Sgt. Brooks were posthumously awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Meritorious Service Medal, and Combat Action Badge.

Stars and Stripes added:

With the deaths Sunday, nine Americans have been killed supporting Operation Inherent Resolve in 2017, including noncombat deaths. Nearly 50 Americans have been wounded in action since the anti-ISIS campaign began in August 2014, according to Pentagon data.

U.S. troops worked alongside Iraqi security forces to train and advise them throughout their brutal nine-month battle to retake Mosul, the final major city that the terrorist group held in Iraq. The city has been largely turned over to Iraqi Federal Police, described as “hold forces,” who are clearing it of any remaining ISIS fighters and explosives, Manning said.

At least three towns in Iraq are still controlled by ISIS: Tal Afar, about 40 miles west of Mosul, Hawija in northern Iraq and al-Qaim, along the Euphrates River at the Syrian border. U.S. troops are helping the Iraqi forces to prepare an offensive on Tal Afar in the near future, Manning said. The United States believes there about 2,000 ISIS militants there.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and other top U.S. officials have pledged to continue providing the Iraqis with military assistance including airpower and advisers on the ground until ISIS is entirely defeated in the country.

It seems to be an afterthought in America when we lose American military members. We’ve been at war for a long time, and military families lose loved ones, yet it is difficult to know it from the lack of news when there are casualties.

Sunday as we mourned the loss of three lives during the violence in Charlottesville, these soldiers lost their lives in combat. Families and friends in New York and Texas are mourning. Saying “thank you” somehow seems to fall short.

Freedom is not free.

2 U.S. Soldiers Killed by Suicide Bomber in Afghanistan

Two American soldiers were killed Wednesday in a suicide attack on troops in Afghanistan. There was no word how many others may have been injured.

Time Magazine reported:

A suicide bombing attack on a NATO convoy in southern Afghanistan on Wednesday left two American service members dead, a Pentagon spokesman said, despite repeated refusals by the U.S. military in Afghanistan to say whether there were any deaths in the assault claimed by the Taliban.

Navy Capt. Jeff Davis confirmed the casualties in the attack near Kandahar city. The Pentagon’s decision to release the figures seemed to contradict orders issued two months ago by Army Gen. John Nicholson, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, barring information about U.S. combat deaths until days after the incident.

The Taliban, taking credit for the attack, said a small pickup truck packed with explosives was used to ram into the NATO caravan in Kandahar.

The Americans were part of the 8,700 American troops who continue to work with NATO in support of the Afghanistan security forces.

We pause in remembrance of those who were willing to sacrifice it all, and to their families, friends, and fellow soldiers who are left behind to mourn.

“Freedom is not free.”

Cross-posted at Bearing Drift

Sunday Memorial Day Ceremony in Churchville To Honor Native Son

World War I Dough Boy tombstone for Russell Snyder, located in Green Hill Cemetery, Churchville, Virginia. Born Aug 30, 1892, died Oct 8, 1918. Pvt, 11 Co CAC, Fort Mott, Salem, NJ. The statue is extremely detailed and must have cost a great deal of money. Here is a better photo of the dough boy tombstone.

A few weeks ago I received an email from Will Bear in Churchville with an invitation to the Memorial Day observance on Sunday, May 28,  at Green Hill Cemetery. It is a local commemoration that is open to the public, and is a reminder of why we remember all fallen soldiers on Memorial Day.

A casualty of World War II, Winfield Liggett is buried in France but a headstone in Churchville is a reminder of this native son.

This year will feature a local family’s contribution to the world’s largest amphibious military operation to liberate World War II France. Winfield Liggett III was assigned to what would often be the lead company (of the lead battalion of the lead regiment) of the 29th Division offensive operations. Wounded in the Normandy invasions, he returned to France and later died in the intense fight for the port city of Brest.

Jimmy Kilbourne,  Executive Director of Staunton’s Stonewall Brigade 116th Infantry Regiment Foundation and Museum, has compiled his research about this Virginian to reveal the fascinating story of sacrifice for freedom.

Part 2: Bedford D-Day Memorial remembers, reads names of those lost June 6, 1944

“The eyes of the world are upon you … free men of the world are marching together to victory. I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty, and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full victory.” –General Dwight Eisenhower (Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in Europe on the eve of Operation Overlord)

See Part 1: Remembering D-Day 72 years later for more photos of the June 6, 2016, D-Day commemoration at the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford, Virginia. Below are more pictures from Monday’s event.

“This vast operation is undoubtedly the most complicated and difficult that has ever occurred.” –British Prime Minister Winston Churchill

Part 1: Remembering D-Day 72 years later

“Fifty-seven years ago, America and the nations of Europe formed a bond that has never been broken. And all of us incurred a debt that can never be repaid. Today, as America dedicates our D-Day Memorial, we pray that our country will always be worthy of the courage that delivered us from evil and saved the free world.”
–President George W. Bush (at National D-Day Memorial dedication, June 6, 2001)

Monday, June 6, 2016, was a day for sights and sounds and memories and stories from some of the few remaining veterans who survived June 6, 1944. It was the 72nd anniversary of Operation Overlord — the allied invasion of Normandy, known as D-Day — that marked the beginning of the end of World War II.

Exiting the four-lane highway in Bedford and turning onto Overlord Drive, it is a quiet drive through open fields up the hill to a place of reverence and thankfulness. Surrounded by the peaceful Virginia countryside with the Blue Ridge Mountains, including Sharp Top and Flat Top mountains that form the Peaks of Otter in the distance, the National D-Day Memorial provides an opportunity to learn and reflect on a pivoting event in America’s — and the world’s — history.

The overwhelming extent of the sacrifices made as well as the huge operation that involved 150,000 Allied troops, 5,000 ships, 11,000 aircraft, and huge losses of more than 9,000 Allied soldier who died, including 2,499 American soldiers, in the largest amphibious landing the world has ever seen, was sobering. The liberation of Europe began that day and, though the war would continue for almost a year longer, the Normandy invasion gave Allied forces an opening to begin working their way across Europe to defeat Hitler.

Thankfully, the vision of D-Day veteran Bob Slaughter to have a national site to remember and honor those involved was achieved, and the National D-Day Memorial was dedicated on June 6th, 2001, by President George W. Bush.

My husband and I arrived early on Monday and stayed into the afternoon — attending the 11am ceremony, strolling the grounds, reading the historical plaques, and listening to the roll call of names. We left with a renewed appreciation for the Greatest Generation. Below are photos that capture a small part of the day. May we never forget.

Why Bedford for the national memorial? As explained in the video, the memorial is a reminder of the extreme sacrifice the small Virginia town at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains made during the invasion on June 6, 1946. They lost more men per capita than any other location in America. Of the 30 Bedford soldiers in Company A, 19 perished that day and four others during the war. That sacrifice by the Bedford Boys was the reason their town was chosen as the site for the national memorial. For photos of the memorial’s tribute to the Bedford Boys, see 72 years later … the Bedford Boys.

For the first time ever the roll call of the names of the 2,499 Americans killed on D-Day was read by volunteers whose voices could be heard  throughout the memorial’s grounds. The honoring of the fallen continued for three hours into the afternoon with names read by veterans, families, volunteers, and dignitaries.

“They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning, We will remember them.” –Laurence Binyon

 

The Bedford Boys seemed to come to life Monday.

Visitors began arriving prior to the 11am ceremony. Veterans were seated under shady awnings out of the sun’s glare.

The 29th Division Drum and Fife band and honor guard.

A P-51 Mustang circled the site and made two passes over the memorial at the beginning of the ceremony. The World War II vintage aircraft was an American long-range, single-seat fighter-bomber used throughout the war and on D-Day (see Air Power Over the Normandy Beaches and Beyond). The pilots who flew the aircraft (see WW II pilot remembers D-Day, 72 years later) and gliders (see The Flying Coffins of World War II) were instrumental to allied forces, flying bombing missions and delivering troops and supplies.

Members from the French Embassy were there to award France’s highest decoration, the Legion d’Honneur is France’s highest decoration,  to a Frenchman who was liberated with his family because of the D-Day invasion. Decades later he moved to America only to see there were no commemorations like were held in his country to honor the men who were part of that liberation, and so he began working with them. Now a Roanoke resident, he has continued to honor and serve the vets as they grow older. After many American soldiers received the Legion d’Honneur throughout the years, he is the latest recipient. See his entire story by reporter Matt Chittum in the Roanoke Times.

 

D-Day veteran Norword Thomas of the 101st Airborne. It was amazing to hear his remarks about that day.

 

The future looked to the past as World War II veterans were recognized and thanked.

We sat in front of the names of these brave Allied soldiers.

Patriotism is expressed in many ways.

“The Bedford Boys” statue.

See more photos from Jill Nance with the News and Advance.

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
Bedford, Virginia
June 6, 2016

One American soldier killed, 2 injured in Afghanistan

By Lynn R. Mitchell

U.S. military command in Kabul: 1 U.S. troop killed, 2 soldiers wounded in fighting in southern Afghanistan.

An American soldier was killed during Operation Enduring Freedom, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch:

The fighting Tuesday against the Taliban was near the city of Marja in Helmand province, where the Taliban has made recent gains.

Details on the battle and the number wounded or killed is sketchy and the situation is fluid.

One U.S. official says a U.S. helicopter was sent to the scene to evacuate casualties but did not immediately take off because a mortar landed nearby. It was not clear whether the mortar has damaged the helicopter.

Prayers go out to the families with gratitude for their sacrifices. Freedom is not free.

‘I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day’ … remembering our U.S. troops around the world

By Lynn R. Mitchell

My dad, who passed away in 1975, was a U.S. Navy veteran who served on the USS Wisconsin during World War II. He was 19 years old when he went to war. Later in his life, while I was growing up, he was a Sunday School teacher for 12-year-old boys in our church.

Dad’s favorite Christmas hymn was, “I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day,” because his service during the war had made the words even more meaningful to him. I think of him every year when this song is played.

For Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, the words of the song came from personal tragedy, as heard in the narrative by actor Ed Herman with music from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. This year, in the wake of the loss of six American military members in Afghanistan in recent days, the words are even more poignant to a mourning nation.

Our military men and women are working this Christmas, many far from home and away from their families. Let us remember those currently deployed to Afghanistan and other places around the world as well as here on the homeland who protect our freedoms and keep us safe.

This is in memory of my Dad, and for all our military members, past and present.

I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1863)

I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along the unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

Till ringing, singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime, a chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And in despair I bowed my head
“There is no peace on earth,” I said,
“For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.”

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men.”

Originally posted in 2006

Wreaths Across America … remembering fallen military heroes at Christmas

Staunton National Cemetery

By Lynn R. Mitchell

Wreaths Across America tractor-trailer trucks left Maine last weekend for the week-long journey to Arlington and other national cemeteries throughout America, each loaded with evergreen wreaths. If you drive by a military cemetery on Saturday and see tombstones decorated with fresh, handmade balsam Christmas wreaths accented with bright red bows, you will have witnessed the generosity of Wreaths Across America.

The tradition was started in 1992 with 4,000 wreaths donated by Merrill Worcester, a tradition that continues on the second Saturday each December. This year, thousands of volunteers across the nation and around the world will lay 219,000 wreaths on military graves as a remembrance of those who sacrificed for our freedom.

Mr. Worcester’s quiet donation all those years ago of 4,000 wreaths for Arlington Cemetery has become an annual gift of love from this Maine wreath maker who recognized that freedom is not free. Because of his generosity and desire to remember those who sacrificed, he started a tradition that was fairly obscure for 12 years until a photo hit the internet in 2005 showing the Christmas wreaths on Arlington’s snow-covered graves.

A look back at Veterans Day 2014 … Delta Force medic Dr. Rob Marsh and ‘Black Hawk Down’

Dr. Rob Marsh and Pastor Greg Mayo

[Editor’s note: Looking back at Veterans Day 2014 at Cornerstone Church of Augusta with Delta Force medic Dr. Rob Marsh with his inside look at “Black Hawk Down.”]

By Lynn R. Mitchell

“Greater love hath no man than this: that he lay down his life for his friends.” –John 15:13

The older gentleman slowly made his way to the front of the banquet room to the sound of applause from the crowd of more than 300 gathered to honor local military veterans. It was the day set aside for them, and in this gathering he was one of three left standing in the “over 90” group of vets — he was 93 — in the “who is the oldest veteran” recognition. What he revealed to the crowd brought everyone to tears.

He was, he said, one of the first soldiers on Omaha Beach that long-ago day in 1944 in the invasion that saw thousands of Allied forces killed.

In September an invitation was extended from a friend whose church decided to honor local military veterans on Veterans Day:

Thank you for serving our country and protecting our freedoms!

On Veteran’s Day, Nov. 11, Cornerstone Church of Augusta is hosting a Veterans Day Banquet at 6:30 p.m. Our guest speaker is Dr. Rob Marsh, former Delta Force Medic. Tickets are free for veterans and a guest.

By the time Veterans Day rolled around, all 300 tickets had been distributed with a waiting list of dozens. Our friend, who was on the committee that organized the event, obtained permission so I could write about the dinner and take photos.

We picked up two neighbors who rode with us to Cornerstone Church of Augusta in Fishersville. One is a Korean War veteran (see Korean War vet survived behind enemy lines), and the other is the widow of a Vietnam War Army tunnel rat who passed away in June (see Passings: Honoring a Vietnam Veteran and Husband, Neighbor, Friend, Military Vet: Saying Goodbye).

Veterans Day is every day for Pham family

By Tony Pham
General Counsel, Richmond Sheriff’s Department

Maybe it’s personal for me. My life has been shaped by the sacrifices of veterans who picked up arms and gave of themselves. From our entry to this great nation 40 years ago to becoming citizens 30 years ago, these opportunities were secured by men and women in our armed forces who fought for our country.

Maybe it’s the 58,000 who did not come home or the many others who went missing in action or how our veterans were treated when they did come home, all while I enjoy freedom that makes this personal for me. Maybe it’s the understanding that these brave men and women leave their families to fight so we can enjoy ours.

Ronald Reagan once said that “freedom is never more than a generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.” I, for one, am grateful we have our veterans fighting for our nation’s freedom so we don’t have to one day tell our kids what it is like to live in the United States.

So to all of my veterans, today and every day, is your day. The Pham Phamily sincerely appreciates each of you. Without you, there would be no us. I cannot speak for others, but Veterans Day is everyday for us.

‪#‎Leadership‬‪#‎Commitment‬‪#‎Courage‬

—
Tony Pham, a General Counsel for the Richmond City Sheriff’s Office and the GOP nominee for the Henrico Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office, lives with his family in Henrico, Virginia. Born in South Vietnam, he and his family immigrated to the United States at the fall of Saigon in 1975, and became American citizens in 1985. A graduate of the College of William and Mary, he earned his J.D. from the University of Richmond’s School of Law. In 1999, Mr. Pham was initiated into the Upsilon Nu Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, a historically African American fraternity founded on the campus of Howard University.  He was named as one of Style Weekly Magazine’s “Top 40 Under 40” and Virginia Lawyers Weekly’s “Leaders in the Law” for his work in criminal law and the Asian community.

’11 Bronze Stars, 14 Tours, 1 Widow’

                                                 Master Sergeant Joshua Wheeler

By Lynn R. Mitchell

The words by Michael Daly hit hard:

Master Sergeant Joshua Wheeler, the first American to die in Iraq against ISIS, is a reminder of those who have sacrificed in two wars that never really ended.

Fourteen combat deployments.

Eleven bronze stars, four with a V for valor.

Seventy hostages rescued in the final mission.

One flag covered coffin, to be met by one new widow.

Four sons now without a father, one a new baby.

One posthumous Purple Heart.

And 319 million Americans in perpetual debt to Master Sergeant Joshua Wheeler, 19 years-old at enlistment, 39 when he became the first American solider to die in Iraq since the war supposedly ended there.

Too many of us have acted as if we were not at war at all during these last 14 years. We all but forgot about those who were deployed again and again and again as we preoccupied ourselves with the likes of the Kardashians.

Moral courage needed addressing women in combat

By Daniel Cortez

Ladies and gentleman, guard your daughters. The government may want them for cannon fodder while attempting to advance the concept of women in combat.

Four decades ago while I was serving as a Marine Drill Instructor and later running a leadership school, we debated suggesting gender equality demanded the joint services put women in front line units.

Bad idea then … bad idea now.

I recall General Sam Jaskilka, the Marine Corps’ second highest ranking officer, speaking candidly about the fairer sex in combat.

Jaskilka a decorated World War II, Korean, and Vietnam veteran, calmly and frankly stated as he was visiting us troops in New Orleans at the time that he did not advocate sending women to combat. He was an old school gentleman when it came to women, and he said with specificity, “But they might.”

The “they” were politicians in Washington.